As part of strategies to expand market share and reach more customers, companies under the Dangote Group have decided to offer discount in all their goods as they storm the two international trade fairs kicking off this week in both Lagos and Kano.

Specifically, the Kano International Trade Fair had opened on Thursday, November 4 at the International Trade fair Complex, Zoo Road, Kano while the Lagos International Trade Fair holds from Friday, November 5 at the Lagos International Trade Fair Complex, Lagos_Badagry
Expressway Lagos.

Companies from the group that are to exhibit at the fair include Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc, Dangote Flour Mill Plc Dangote Agrosacks Limited, National Salt Company of Nigeria Plc (NASCON), Dangote Cement Plc and Dansa Foods Limited. Some of the products to be displayed at the fair include Danvita, Alkama (wheat meal), confectionary flour, noodles, sugar, salt, tomato paste, various ranges of fruit juice products and bottled water from Dansa Foods.

According to a statement from Corporate Communications Department of Dangote Group, visitors to the group pavilion at both fairs will have the opportunity of buying products of these companies at reduced prices. There will also be free samples of the products for the visitors.

Dangote Flour Mills is offering discount products at discounted prices while visitors to the stand will taste free samples of cooked noodles and macaroni. As part of promo during the fair, a carton of  70gram pack noodles will be sold at N900  per carton as  against N1,000 in the market while a carton of 130gram pack  noodles will sell at N1,300 against N1,350 in the market. Customers who buy 10 cartons of noodle will get one carton free.

Visitors to the stand will buy Dangote refined salt (1 kg) at N900 per bag against N950 in the market while Petti Tomato (70gram) will sell at N1, 100 per carton as against N1, 200 in the market.

Dangote Group, the biggest business conglomerate in sub_Saharan Africa, has Dangote Flour Mills Plc, Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc, Dangote Cement Plc and National Salt Company of Nigeria (NASCON) as its subsidiaries that are listed on the NSE.While many companies have not been able to declare dividend due to their poor financial performance as a result of the difficult operating environment, companies under the Dangote stable have enhanced the liquidity position of shareholders with a dividend of N21.225 billion in 2009.

According to the annual reports and accounts of the listed companies, Dangote Sugar Refinery paid a dividend of N12 billion, which translates into N1 per share, legacy BCC paid N3.9 billion, which also translates into a dividend of N1 per share. NASCON paid a dividend N1.325 billion amounting to N0.50 per share, while Dangote Flour Mills paid N4 billion translating into N0.80 per share. The company had earlier paid an interim dividend of N1.5 billion (N0.30 per share).