Echoes From The Past: When a brewer and a hotel shape the destiny of a country

File: Standard

How can the destiny of a country’s economic engine be tied to a bottle of beer and a hotel? It is rare that beer drinking and investing go together unless in insolvency cases. But in Kenya, the history of the country’s thirst for quality beer can never be told without mentioning the New Stanley Hotel, presently known as The Stanley and Nairobi Stocks Exchange, now known as Nairobi Securities Exchange.

And the story of this unusual trinity is almost a century-old, as it started in 1922, only two years after Kenya became a colony. All these memories of 100 years are brought alive by a single picture. In this rare photo, two Africans, impeccably dressed in suits, ties and peaked caped hats are posing by a lorry.