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Egyptian Automotive Aftermarket Enters Fast Lane

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Egyptian Automotive Aftermarket Enters Fast Lane

Egypt’s automotive aftermarket is accelerating and has been dubbed “one of Africa’s most exciting markets” as its motoring population and vehicle sales grow, its economy expands, FDI floods in, and the government moves to combat automotive emissions.

It’s a powerful combination which Germany’s Africa business experts africon GmbH, the knowledge partners of Automechanika Dubai, the Middle East and Africa’s largest international automotive aftermarket trade show, contends has resulted in an aftermarket now worth between US $1-2 billion. And africon GmbH should know, having worked on more than 30 automotive market projects across Africa in the last few years.

The company has now turned its expertise specifically on the high potential Egyptian market with a whitepaper collated from research among companies within the Arab republic’s automotive industry.

Opportunity Rising:

The paper’s positive and opportunistic sentiment points to the country’s rising population – now the third largest within Africa with more than 100 million people – and its economic advancement, having overtaken South Africa as the continent’s second-largest economy with a GDP of US $360 billion and sturdy growth forecasts.

“The IMF predicts that growth will slow to around 2.5% this year but recover to more than 5% from 2022 forward,” the paper reports. “After economically difficult years in 2016/17, inflation has come down to around 6%. Unemployment has been reducing, and GDP per capita in US$ terms has increased by almost 50% since 2017. Consequently, Egypt has been the largest recipient of FDI in Africa for several years in a row, receiving more than $9 billion worth of investments in 2019 and almost $6 billion in 2020. This growth is driven, among other things, by continuous economic and fiscal reforms. For instance, on the Ease of Doing Business Index, Egypt has improved by 14 places since 2018.”

Egypt is now in growth mode, even despite the rigors of the COVID-19 pandemic and was among the few countries to report full year GDP growth in 2020.

Growth Market:

The growth has fed into the aftermarket, with the country now being home to one of Africa’s largest vehicle fleets with around six million vehicles on the country’s roads, with the majority – approximately 4.6 million – being passenger cars. This is followed by almost a million trucks and about 470,000 buses. Most passenger cars are petrol-powered, while many commercial vehicles rely on diesel engines but that could soon change.

“The government is increasing the share of dual-fuel cars, which can use both petrol and compressed natural gas (CNG). Around 300,000 vehicles in Egypt already use CNG. This number will likely increase further over the next years,” the paper reports.

Egypt is also taking bold steps to replace internal combustion engines with more environmentally friendly alternatives. Last year the government announced an initiative to encourage consumers to replace old vehicles for new ones operating on CNG engines with extended credit facilities among its green program incentives. This has led to China’s Dongfeng Motors planning to assemble up to 25,000 electric vehicles a year in an Egyptian assemble plant.

Even the brand make-up of the country’s vehicle fleet is changing. The significant market shares held by Chevrolet/Isuzu, Hyundai, Toyota, and Nissan could be eroded by the entry of European and Chinese brands fueled by preferential import duties.

“New vehicle sales in Egypt have recently grown, currently standing at more than 200,000 units per year. Around half of this figure is assembled locally. Egypt is home to notable local vehicle assemblers like GB Auto, General Motors Egypt / Mansour Automotive, and Nissan. While most passenger vehicles are produced for the domestic market, many buses are exported to regional markets,” explains the whitepaper.

Change The Name of the Game:

Change is also coming to Egypt’s heavily import-driven aftermarket, which is dominated by Asian suppliers, namely China, Korea, and Japan. However, Germany and the US now rank among the country’s top ten suppliers of parts and components and globally leading brands enjoy relatively high market shares for crucial parts. But the local component manufacturing market is gaining ground and supplying local vehicle assemblers, the aftermarket and export markets with a range of batteries, brake parts, wiring and filets.

Egypt’s importer/distributor landscape is a mix of small and large companies, most of which are based in Cairo. The independent aftermarket is fragmented. The importers/distributors sell directly to end-users, workshops, and a network of wholesalers and retailers across the country. As is the case in other African markets, a significant share of Egyptians, having taken the advice of trusted mechanics, buy their parts from retailers instead of from workshops. However, most do follow the advice of their trusted mechanics.

The Trend & Outlook:

E-commerce is fast emerging as a significant aftermarket force through highly visible platforms such as Odiggo, Tawfiqia, Egyparts and Amazon Egypt.

The Egyptian aftermarket is ripe for growth and to offer up great opportunities for parts producers, distributors, and service providers, but increasing competition from local producers may mean overseas suppliers will need to invest in their own on-the-ground structures or seek out ways to add value locally to increase market shares.

GB Auto, a leading Egyptian automotive supplier, sums up the expected scenario: “We currently see three factors strongly influencing the future of our market in Egypt: firstly, we are expecting a period of robust growth across various industry segments. Secondly, online sales will likely gain significant importance. Thirdly, the share of CNG-powered vehicles increasing further, which will open up new industry segments and growth opportunities,” explained Mohamed Yahia, Managing Director of Ready Parts (GB Auto Group).

Others looking for indicators of the growth potential can track the Egyptian visitor presence at Automechanika Dubai which has risen by 20% since 2015.

“We anticipate a surge in visitors from Egypt when the show returns from December 14th-16th December. This year we have the support and presence of Egypt Expo & Convention Authority (EECA) and have also seen a 142% y-o-y (2019-2021) increase in floor space taken from Egyptian businesses – a true testament to current conditions and the appetite for doing business,” commented Mahmut Gazi Bilikozen, Automechanika Dubai’s Show Director.

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It’s 7 Star Performance for Chain Reactions at 2024 SABRE Awards

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It was a seven-star performance for Chain Reactions Africa (CRA), one of Africa’s leading Public Relations and Integrated Communications Consultancy as it took home seven African SABRE trophies, more than any other public relations firm in Africa in the 2024 competition.
The awards which were held at the end of the annual African Public Relations Association (APRA) Conference, were presented by Provoke Media, organisers of the awards in Basam, Abidjan, Cote D’Ivore on May 16th 2024.
The work covered campaigns for the Lagos Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (LAMATA), and its Lagos Blue Rail, 9mobile’s The Hack – Expand Your Hustle’, ‘Taming the Bull’ for the Presidency, ‘Next Era of Happiness’ for leading biscuit company, Pladis Foods Nigeria Limited.
Receiving the awards on behalf of Chain Reactions and its clients, was its Managing Director/Chief Strategist, Israel Opayemi, who noted that this is a seven-star performance by Chain Reactions Africa at the 2024 SABRE Awards.
In his comments Opayemi said “to emerge as the highest winner at the 2024 edition of the award with seven SABRE Awards is humbling as well as exciting for us at Chain Reactions Africa. We are immensely proud to be honoured on such a global platform like the SABRE awards which is the holy grail of Public Relations globally as the awards programme is dedicated to benchmarking the best PR works across the globe.”
He continued, “I am making a three-fold dedication of these multiple trophies to our clients who believe in us, my team members who do the brave works relentlessly and our dear country Nigeria. Ten years ago, we were at the SABRE Awards in Miami, Florida in the United States watching and applauding as winners took turn on stage. Ten years ago, we were asking for a seat at the table. Today, we are sitting in creative resplendence at the head of the table. Today, we are flying the Nigerian flag on the global stage. We are now a territory of reckon and relevance in the global PR space.”
It seems winning awards is just a Chain Reactions thing, chuckled Arun Sudhaman CEO and Editor-in-Chief of Provoke Media, organizers of the SABRE Awards as Opayemi rose up seven times to receive the awards. The PR consultancy also picked up four Certificates of Excellence in recognition of its work launching the Nigerian Youth Trend Report 2024 known as ‘ARAMANDA’, ‘Next Era of Happiness’, ‘Lagos Blue Rail’, ‘The Hack – Expand Your Hustle’, and ‘Taming the Bull’.
In his reaction, President and Chairman of Council of the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) described the awards by Chain Reactions Africa as “a harvest of honours for Nigeria”. He thanked the Chain Reactions Africa team for their outstanding works saying, “thank you for making us proud.”
Chain Reactions Africa has over the years won several prestigious SABRE awards and has been awarded more than 15 Certificates of Excellence. At last year’s award, the company won CEO of the Year category for the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu for use of public relations to tell the story of his administration’s achievements and scooped two Certificates of Excellence in the Corporate Image category for the ‘Momentum Campaign’ for Cellulant, a flagship payment solution provider; and ‘Marketing to Consumers’ category for ‘The #NaijaHighlandah Campaign’ for William Lawson’s, Scotch Whiskey brand.
The 2024 Africa SABRE Awards shortlist included more than 120 campaigns, selected from over 500 entries in this year’s competition, which recognises Superior Achievement in Branding, Reputation and Engagement. The campaigns were evaluated by a jury of industry leaders.

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Abuja Investments Company Limited Launches Automated System

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In a significant stride toward modernization and efficiency, Ambassador Maureen P. Tamuno, Group Managing Director and CEO of Abuja Investments Company Limited (AICL) has unveiled an Automated Tollgate System for streamlining access control, security enhancement, and facilitation of smoother operations in Garki Ultra -Modern Market in the Federal Capital Territory.

According to Fatima Nadada, Head of Communications, AICL, the automated system will among other things provide: Smart Access Control; also, the new system employs cutting-edge technology to regulate entry and exit at the market gates by ensuring that only authorized individuals can access the premises.

“In addition, there is room for real-time monitoring of activities as market administrators can monitor activities at the gates in real time, allowing for prompt responses to any anomalies or security breaches.

 “Also, the system collects data on foot traffic, peak hours, and patterns. Thus, enabling informed decision-making by the management of the market, as well as efficient revenue collection, since it will improve automated payment processing, simplifies fee collection, reduce paperwork and enhance transparency.”

In her remarks at the event, Ambassador Tamuno expressed enthusiasm on the milestone and was optimistic that the automated system would not only empower market stakeholders but contribute to the growth of FCT’s economy.

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Bigi Carbonated Soft Drinks Treats 40 Consumers to an Epic Easter Movie Hangout

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Reinforcing her commitment to a delightful consumer experience, Bigi Carbonated Soft Drinks, a leading brand from Rite Foods Limited, hosted 40 lucky fans to an impressive Easter celebration. This exciting Easter movie hangout took place at Silverbird Cinemas, Ikeja City Mall, Lagos, and featured a screening of the movie, “Beast of Two Worlds (Ajakaju)”.

The movie’s portrayal of traditional Nigerian society alongside its thrilling plot left the Bigi consumers thoroughly entertained. After the movie, the fans received exciting freebies and expressed their gratitude to the Bigi brand for this special Easter treat.

Biola Aransiola, Assistant Brand Manager, Bigi, commented on the event, highlighting Bigi’s dedication to showing appreciation to their consumers. “This movie hangout served as a way to celebrate Easter with our loyal fans and provide them with a truly extraordinary experience, all while enjoying the refreshing and diverse range of 13 Bigi flavours,” Aransiola stated.

Bigi Carbonated Soft Drinks has consistently demonstrated a strong commitment to consumer well-being. The brand actively connects with its audience by creating opportunities to fulfill their dreams and offering refreshment throughout their journeys. Bigi’s dedication to its consumers is further solidified through sponsorships of various initiatives, earning them prestigious awards such as the “Most Innovative Carbonated Soft Drink Brand of the Year” (2023), “Friendly Brand of the Year” (2023), and “Best Value for Money-Carbonated Soft Drink Brand” (2023), among others

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