Nairobi, Sept. 3 -- Meandering through the labyrinth of Nairobi furniture retailers along Mombasa Road, one experiences eye-popping vivid contrasts of designs, styles, colours, fabrics, and wood.
Enter one store and find well-organised rows of furniture options with well-placed visible price tags. Then spend hours pondering price combinations of furniture parings.
Arrive in a different store and unsettlingly discover no marked prices on any merchandise. A receptionist directs patrons to inquire from roaming sales agents if desirous of price details on any item. It could take hours just to gain an understanding of what all the prices are per furniture category that interests a buyer.
Then, all those prices must lodge in a shopper's short-...