Standard Media announce its expansion plan

Standard Group Chief Executive Officer Orlando Lyomo (left) and Chief Executive Officer Kenya Safari lodges and Hotels, Victor Shitakha during standard group stakeholders cocktail party at English point Marina in Mombasa. [Omondi Onyango/Standard]

The Standard Group plans to expand into the East African region while solidifying its portfolio in Kenya.

Board member Julius Kipng’etich said the group would open new radio stations in neighbouring countries.

“Time has come for us to expand and cover East Africa. We want to become an East Africa company,” said Dr Kipng’etich, who spoke in Mombasa on Saturday night.

The group’s chief executive officer, Orlando Lyomu, said the company was keen to create other platforms to meet the needs of customers.

“We want to come up with customer-centred products to meet their needs. We have to be that organisation that is very old in existence but very young in the way it thinks. That is the Standard we want to build,” he said Standard Group owns the region’s oldest newspaper, The Standard. It also has in its stable KTN Home, KTN News - the only 24-hour news channel in the country - Radio Maisha and The Nairobian.

“We have these channels that complement each other. However, are they enough? If we want to be customer-centred, then what we are offering has to be very specific. Going forward, we expect to expand our television presence in the next couple of months. Kenyans will start seeing new brands being launched,” Mr Lyomu said.

He said this would offer customers a wider range of products to choose from.

Top Standard Group managers and board members were in Mombasa for a meeting with businessmen and CEOs of companies in the Coast region.

Also present at the English Point Marina were Director of Marketing Sales Irene Kimani, Head of Human Resources Nicholas Siwatom, Mr Kipkoech Tanui, the Deputy Editorial Director and Managing Editor, Print, and Lerioukina Tiampati, a director of the Standard Group.