Employee theft shuts Nairobi studio, tests African small firms
BBC reports how employee theft closed a Nairobi waxing studio and hit a Ghanaian electronics shop, citing a 2022 PwC survey and loss-control estimates.
The story in focus
BBC News reports that employee theft contributed to the closure of Kenyan entrepreneur Boina's Nairobi waxing studio in October 2025 and nearly ended Ghanaian shop owner Muftawu Nabila's business. The report cites a 2022 PwC survey finding 63% of East African respondents reported economic crime, versus 46% globally.
- Boina opened Waxaholic Studio in Nairobi on 1 September 2024 and closed it in October 2025 after a customer reported being asked to pay a different number.
- In Accra, Muftawu Nabila said a third employee took up to $30 from $200 daily sales over two months; he rebuilt the shop with his journalism salary.
- A 2022 PwC survey found 63% of East African respondents reported economic crime, compared with 46% globally.
- Hipora Business Solutions estimates employee theft accounts for more than 60% of losses recorded by small businesses.
- Kenyan clothing brand IKOJN centralised procurement and created a paper trail after alleged supplier price inflation.
Nairobi closure and Accra losses
BBC News reports that Boina, a Kenyan food creator, opened Waxaholic Studio, a waxing and hydrafacial parlour in Nairobi's central business district, on 1 September 2024. A year later she had hired a receptionist and two specialists and took a two-week holiday to Europe. A customer's Instagram message said she had been asked to send money to a different number from the one on the wall.
Boina told the BBC that revenue began to fall in early 2025, which she initially dismissed as a seasonal slump. Rather than confront the employees, she put the studio up for sale, found no buyer, sold some equipment and closed Waxaholic in October 2025. In Accra, Ghana, Muftawu Nabila said a third employee at his electronics shop took up to $30 from $200 in daily sales over two months. A stock count revealed a gap between inventory and sales receipts, and he dismissed her. His journalism salary allowed him to rebuild the business.
Surveys and tighter controls
The BBC cites a 2022 PwC survey finding that 63% of respondents in East Africa said their organisations had experienced economic crime, compared with 46% globally. Hipora Business Solutions, a loss-prevention firm working across East and Southern Africa, estimates employee theft accounts for more than 60% of losses recorded by small businesses. Hipora boss John Wanjohi told the BBC that employees can collude with clients and suppliers, and that many small businesses lack proper safeguards.
Cris Njoki, founder of Kenyan ready-to-wear brand IKOJN, told the BBC that a staff member allegedly asked suppliers to quote higher prices for raw materials and shared the excess after invoices were paid. The employee left after being confronted with evidence. Njoki said the firm has since centralised procurement and created a paper trail so that finance speaks to the supplier and makes payment. The report also notes that employers must investigate suspected theft, gather evidence and allow employees to respond before disciplinary action, according to advocate Judith Guserwa.
What did the 2022 PwC survey cited by the BBC find about economic crime in East Africa?
It found that 63% of respondents in East Africa said their organisations had experienced economic crime, compared with a global figure of 46%, according to the BBC report.
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