ZAMSHU WARMS UP FOR START OF SOCCER SEASON

Zambeef Products’ Zamleather division ramps up production

Flashback: International sports personality Ponga Liwewe (left), Zambeef Chairman Dr Jacob Mwanza (centre), and boot designer Richard Mulenga, launch the new Kaleza Z-12 soccer boot by Zamshu.

Zambeef Product’s Zamshu brand has stepped up production of its Kaleza Z-12 leather soccer boots in the run-up to this year’s football season.

The boots, which were officially launched last year, are the first to be locally designed and manufactured in Zambia.

The Kaleza Z-12 model leather boots – meaning ‘lightning’ in major dialects in Eastern and Lusaka Provinces of Zambia – are made by Zambeef division Zamleather and are being taken up by players across the country as the new high quality, affordable footwear of choice on the pitch.

The boots are retailing at K219 for youth size and K239 for adult sizes and are available at Axis Sports centre in Cairo Road, All Sports, Manda Hill, City Centre Supplies in Freedom Way, and Just for Kickz sports shops in Cairo Mall, Lusaka, and Kitwe and Ndola.

“Kaleza Z-12 football boot is a modern, lightweight boot that is perfectly suited to the demanding local conditions. The boot is fully constructed in Lusaka by Zambian shoe makers, using only the finest Zambian leather,” said Zambeef Marketing Manager Perry Siame.

The Kaleza Z-12 football boot is the latest offering in a constantly evolving range of quality leather footwear products from Zamshu and the first football boot to be manufactured by Zamshu. The boots are also available wholesale at Zamleather’s Kitwe and Lusaka factory outlets and retail at good sports shops nationwide.

The decision by Zamshu to manufacture a football boot was an easy one. As a local company, the manufacturer knew about the country’s passion for football, and also recognised that Zambeef’s own football team purchased football boots in large quantities but found that the boots on offer in the local market were generally of either low cost and low quality or high quality and high price.

“We felt that there was a need to fill the gap in the market with a quality boot at an affordable price,” said Mr Siame.

A second driving factor was Zamleather’s long-standing partnership with the employment creation and health messaging project Alive and Kicking, which has been based at the Zamshu factory in Lusaka since 2006.

“It seemed a natural progression of our relationship and our synergy with Alive & Kicking to develop a footwear product that would complement their product line, enabling them to retail the boots and raise income towards their HIV/AIDS and malaria awareness campaigns,” added Mr Siame.

Social Investment plays a key role in Zambeef’s strategy and its responsibilities as a corporate entity in Zambia form part of each decision it makes.