Planning strategies around African consumers' taste

Consumer tastes are not the same across the African continent according to Michael Wood, co-founder and director of consulting firm Aperio, writes Jaco Maritz on How We Made It In Africa.

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How We Made It In Africa: Consumer tastes are not the same across the African continent... In an effort to explain to consumer goods companies that consumers across Africa have very different preferences and tastes, Wood, at a recent event in Cape Town, "used the dairy industry as an example of how consumption habits differ between West, East and Southern Africa":
- West Africa: most dairy products are "consumed in powder or concentrated form due to the under-developed dairy industry and poor electricity supply which results in ineffective refrigeration
- East Africa: a small, but growing industry as "many rural people have their own cows from which they source milk"
- South Africa: the continent's "most developed and commercial dairy industry with a number of fresh and processed products"
Through this simple example and comparison of the dairy industry across East, West and Southern Africa, it's clear that a "one-size-fits-all strategy" may not be the most successfully strategy to use throuhout the continent.