Why Tom Mboya, a ‘Go Down Arts Centre’ Artiste Is Celebrating After Kenya’s First International Budget Hotel Open in the City

Nairobi will soon see it’s first international budget hotel open in the city with Tune Hotel in Westlands opening its doors to guests on the 18th of July.

At a sneak preview today, the hotel’s General Manager, Stuart Clay, showed off all the unique and interesting features of the hotel. Tune Hotels – Nairobi, Westlands is the first hotel of the international chain in Africa and is a departure from all other Tune Hotels internationally. Unlike other Tune properties, the hotel in Nairobi offers all the standard amenities and a variety of dining options.

“We wanted to introduce a product that is tailor-made for this region while providing a great value proposition. We are also keen that our business contributes to the local economy for which reason, we have sourced most of the materials and skills locally. We have worked with local artists, architects, contractors and service providers,” said Stuart.

The hotel has made a significant effort towards local sourcing. Tune is the first international hotel chain to source beds locally. Tune contracted Dr. Mattress, a local company to manufacture Hypnos® beds at their facility in Kenya in an order valued at about KSh20.million for 375 Hypnos® beds. Hypnos® is a leading international brand for beds combining pressure-relieving pocket springs and layers of the finest natural materials with master craftsmanship and has the reputation for making the most comfortable beds in the world. Hypnos® is an award-winning, ethical and Royalty Appointed bed manufacturer in the UK.

Tom Mboya, a Kenyan artist based at the Go Down Arts Centre in Nairobi, was commissioned to create 280 pieces of original art for the hotel. Each of the rooms in the hotel features an original oil painting by Tom created around the theme of “Street Scenes from Nairobi”.

The paintings present contemporary African culture depicting scenes from Nairobi streets, men and women going about their daily acitivites and the social life of Kenyans. “I am delighted that Tune gave me the opportunity to create these works. I think it is a great way to present our local culture to the international and local guests staying at the hotel while giving me as an artist, the exposure to reach such a wide audience,” said Tom.

The Uniforms for all the staff are being made locally by Hellen Khavugwe a trained fashion designer who launched her custom clothing brand Khavugwe this year. The inspiration  behind her brand is to lend couture styling and construction to all their projects. Hellen’s company is making all the staff uniforms including those heads of departments, administration, house keeping, food and beverage, maintainance and the Chefs.

The hotel will employ 122 local permanent staff in different positions including front office, housekeeping, food & beverage, sales and marketing. Tune Hotels has tied-up with Utali College for internships and is also exploring opportunities with colleges such as Strathmore.

“We are opening an international standard hotel in terms of design, facilities and security with a high quality and empowered local customer service team. We offer all the essentials in the rooms such a very high quality bed, quality linen, en-suite thermostatic power showers and in-room controlled comfort cooling, wi-fi and various dining options. We have also invested heavily in a great security system in and around the hotel,” he added.