Ghanaian CEO shares lessons from building a retail business

Charles Antwi-Boahen is the founder of Kab-Fam, an electronics and home appliance retailer that has grown from modest beginnings into a 16-store chain across Ghana. In a recent interview with How we made it in Africa, he shared some of the key business lessons he has learned over the past decade.

One of his main takeaways is the importance of reinvesting profits. He advises entrepreneurs not to use business income for unrelated ventures. He has always been cautious with money, he says, and gives the example of Kab-Fam avoiding high-rent retail locations – a choice that helped the company stay resilient during exchange rate fluctuations.

Ghana’s volatile macroeconomic environment in recent years has posed serious challenges for Kab-Fam. Between the start of 2022 and November 2024, the Ghanaian cedi plummeted from about 6 to over 16 to the US dollar. The collapse was driven by domestic and global factors. Ghana defaulted on its debt in 2022. Inflation swelled from 31.5% in 2022 to 40.3% in 2023, driven mainly by rising food prices and currency depreciation.

For Kab-Fam, which sells imported products, the weaker currency meant appliances became much more expensive in local currency terms – just as customers were grappling with high inflation. Antwi-Boahen had planned to open 30 stores by 2027, but these plans had to be put on hold.

“The climate here is not stable,” he says. “By no fault of yours, the macroeconomic environment can just change … And if your business is not grounded to absorb some shocks, you’ll be swept off your feet,” he says.

“Don’t be excited by the gains you are making today, thinking it will be the same tomorrow. You cannot guarantee the macroeconomic environment in this part of the world. Anything can happen any time, any day. So when you are having a windfall, be mindful with the kind of decisions you take – expanding unnecessarily or making unnecessary expenditure. Make sure you consolidate your capital.”

He also advises against taking out loans in such an environment. “What if, by no fault of yours, the macroeconomic situation is not working as expected [and] you cannot settle those loans.”

“Don’t waste your capital,” he adds. “You have to be very strategic of the kind of expansion you want to do.” With competition in Ghana’s appliances and electronics space intensifying, he believes businesses must be lean and focused to survive.

One of the most difficult areas, he says, is human resources. Many staff members, in his view, don’t think about the bigger picture – things like sales or the competitive landscape – but simply clock in and out each day without much attachment to the company. He often feels he has to push people to get the work done. Theft has also been an issue. In Ghana, he says, one cannot afford to be an “armchair business owner”, running the company from a distance; one needs to be actively involved and check up on people regularly.

“This is a challenge for almost every business owner you talk to in Ghana,” he says. In response, he has introduced stricter systems and digitised many parts of the operation. “In this world, you can’t trust anyone. The computers can be trusted. Computers would not lie to you. They will give you the figures as they are,” he adds.

Antwi-Boahen says he often goes to bed at 1 or 2am. Late at night, when the messages and phone calls have stopped, is when he finds time to think clearly about the business.

Despite Kab-Fam’s growth – the company now employs more than 400 people – he prefers to stay closely involved in day-to-day operations. “I want to be up to date with everything,” he notes.

Watch our full interview with Charles Antwi-Boahen: Ghana: From side hustle to 16 stores – a retail entrepreneur’s story

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