39 and Counting

Tuesday came with a record of six interviews in one day! Here's a snapshot of our day:

8:30am: picked up by Joe, our faithful driver
9:10am: drop in on Golden Lion International--find out they are three companies in one: Golden Lion Battery Manufacturers, Phoeni Paper (toilet paper manufacturers), and Gold Rock (Management Firm)
10:12am: Wait for Joe who went to fix a flat tire. Wander to front of compound and see showroom for Shantui. Drop in to explore.
10:17am: impromptu interview with Shantui-CATIC, a heavy construction quipment company. They even provided us with a CDRom of information!
10:40am: on our way to the airport for meeting with CATIC, the Chinese state-owned firm that is constructing the airport expansion, among a myriad of other activities
11:00am: shown to Mr. Yellow's office
12:00pm: still waiting for Mr. Yellow
12:15pm: Mr. Yellow arrives and we conduct interview. Discover CATIC is engaged in almost every sector of the economy. Interesting.
12:50pm: bathroom break
12:57pm: snack on coco-puffs on our drive to Athi River
1:15pm: ask nice Maasai men on the side of the road for directions to the EPZ
1:26pm: arrive in Athi River Export Processing Zone (EPZ). wind around to find Royal Garments Factory, where we are meeting a friend of a friend who will introduce us to the Chinese firms
1:40pm: Interview with New Wide Garments/Protex, high end garment manufacturers with 100% export to the US Market.
2:05pm: Tour of the garment factory. Super interesting to see all the different parts of the process. We watched an Izod polo shirt from start (bolt of fabric) to finish (price tags on). They even let us take pictures!
2:30pm: Interview with Hui Commercial, a plastic flake manufacturing firm. They take millions of plastic bottles, cut them, and make them into fibers and filaments for polyester clothing.
2:55pm: Future Garments EPZ: another garment factory. no tour :(
3:15pm: trek back 40 minutes to Nairobi from Athi River
4:00pm: back in Nairobi
4:05pm: rice and beans for lunch/dinner!

Six interviews in one day. total count: 39. Good stuff.