After years in the wilderness, Uchumi Supermarket is making a cautious comeback. The retailer has quietly reopened two branches in Nairobi, at Unicity Mall along Thika Road near Kenyatta University and at Lang’ata Hyper off Lang’ata Road.

For many Kenyans, Uchumi was once a household name. But the chain’s collapse left empty shelves and broken promises scattered across the country. Now, management is trying again, and this time they’re taking it slow.

The Unicity Mall branch caters to students and residents in the rapidly growing Thika Road corridor. Meanwhile, the Lang’ata outlet serves communities that remember when Uchumi dominated this neighborhood. Both locations are testing grounds for whether the brand can regain the trust it lost.

Walking into these reopened stores feels like stepping into a retail time capsule. The familiar logo is there, but everything else has changed. Competitors like Naivas and Quickmart have spent the last few years aggressively expanding into the spaces Uchumi left behind. They’ve built loyal customer bases and streamlined operations that Uchumi will struggle to match.

Some shoppers have welcomed the return, driven by nostalgia and hopes that competition might bring better prices. Others remain skeptical, remembering unpaid suppliers and frustrated customers from the chain’s darkest days.

For now, Uchumi seems content to fly under the radar. No grand reopening ceremonies, no bold expansion plans. Just two stores trying to prove they can keep the lights on and the shelves stocked. Whether this measured approach leads to a full-scale revival or becomes another false start remains to be seen.

The real test will be whether Kenyans are willing to give Uchumi another shot.