About FAB Africa
The meeting place for fashion and beauty under one roof
Fashion and beauty under one roof
FAB-AFRICA is the meeting place for fashion and beauty under one roof: a three-day B2B beauty and fashion trade show with the last day open to consumers. A platform for inspiration, information and connection — and whatever your brand, there is a place for you at FAB Africa.
FAB-AFRICA is more than just a trade show. It is where African fashion meets the rest of the world, and where the glitz and glamour of a lucrative, high-demand beauty and wellness industry meet the people who put those products on shelves: distributors, retail chains, pharmacies, salons and spas.
The 2027 show is the 4th edition, and it runs 9-11 April at the Sarit Expo Centre in Westlands, Nairobi, across Hall 2 (Chiringani) and Hall 3 (Arabuko). The first two days are trade days; the last day opens to consumers, so brands get the order book and the public in the same week.
Who the show is for
Brands and manufacturers
Skincare, colour cosmetics, haircare and wigs, fragrance, nail products, salon and spa equipment, packaging and private label, plus the fashion and accessory labels that sit alongside them.
Buyers who stock it
Distributors, wholesalers, private-label buyers, retail and cosmetics chains, discount and department stores, pharmacies, online stores and duty-free operators.
The professional trade
Salon and spa owners, hairdressers, barbers, make-up artists, dermatologists, estheticians and beauty educators — the people whose recommendation moves a product.
Press and partners
Beauty and lifestyle media, influencers, trade associations and the import and logistics partners that bring brands into East Africa.
Why Kenya
Kenya's beauty and personal-care industry has become one of the region's most active investment stories. The market grew from roughly KES 26 billion in 2017 to KES 100 billion in 2022, and the cosmetics segment is projected to keep growing at around 9% a year.
Two numbers explain why the show is in Nairobi. With a population of almost 53 million, Kenya has become the sales and distribution hub of the East African markets, and its own beauty industry is put at around USD 496 million — more than USD 450 million, and third in sub-Saharan Africa behind South Africa (USD 6 billion) and Nigeria.
Much of that is driven by lifestyle change and a young, urban population, but the supply side matters too: importers are the biggest players in the foreign-brand market, bringing cosmetics from Europe, North America, the Middle East and Asia. Dubai has become the hotspot for African importers placing orders — which is exactly why a show in Nairobi, with manufacturers and distributors in one hall, shortens the route.
Kenya also leads Sub-Saharan Africa in apparel exports, supported by government policy (Buy Kenya, Build Kenya), and sustainability is shaping both industries: local labels such as Maisha build on upcycling and craftsmanship, and the clothes-swap and second-hand communities that circulate in Nairobi are part of how fashion is consumed here.
Two shows in one venue
Trade
B2B days
The first two days are for the trade: exhibitors, distributors, buyers and press, with the B2B matchmaking programme running alongside the exhibition and the conference.
- Buyers registered in advance book meetings before the show opens.
- Conference sessions on retail, formulation, packaging, sustainability and salon business.
- Press and media access across the trade days.
Consumer
The public day
The final day opens the doors to consumers, which is what makes FAB Africa different from a pure order-writing show: the public sees the brands, and the brands leave with retail awareness as well as wholesale leads.
- Brand discovery for the public on the final day.
- Demonstrations, make-up and hair sessions on the floor.
- Retail and e-commerce partners meeting the audience they sell to.
Alongside the exhibition
The show's programme is not only stand-to-buyer. Four things run around the halls through the three days.
Workshops
Practical sessions for the trade — technique, formulation, retail and salon business — run alongside the exhibition rather than in a separate venue.
Meet & greet
Structured introductions between exhibitors, buyers and delegations, so a first conversation has a reason to happen.
Runway
Fashion shows on the floor, where the designers exhibiting under the fashion profile show the collection the buyers are looking at on the stand.
Pop-up stores
Retail pop-ups that let a brand sell to the public on the consumer day — the difference between a trade show and a market.