Africa-Press – Ghana. Mr Ralph Ayitey, Chief Executive Officer of the Coconut Grove Hotel Group, has urged Ghanaian businesses to stop inflating prices during festive seasons.
He said festive periods should be used as a strategic tool for long‐term growth and customer acquisition.
Mr Ayitey gave the advise during the hotel’s annual year‐end customer appreciation event, “Night of Nine Lessons & Carols and Musical Concert,” held at the Coconut Grove Regency Hotel in Accra.
The event featured the Winneba Youth Choir.
Mr Ayitey criticised the common trend of seasonal price hikes.
“We cannot use Christmas simply as a catalyst for our bottom line through overpricing,” he stated.
Mr Ayitey emphasised that short‐term gains damaged customer trust and loyalty. “It’s important that we use festivities as an opportunity for market penetration activity,” he said.
He urged businesses, especially those with underperforming products, to offer reasonable margins and attractive value to draw new customers organically.
Mr Ayitey explained that the goal was to attract customers who would remain loyal beyond the season, not drive them away with inflated prices.
His remarks formed part of a broader appeal for businesses to reduce prices amid appreciation of the cedi against the dollar.
Mr Ayitey endorsed the “Black Star Experience,” designed to promote domestic tourism and local culture.
He said the initiative could showcase Ghanaian food, textiles and creative arts but noted raw material challenges, stressing the need for a profitable farm‐to‐consumer value chain to prevent losses and ensure market access.
Mr Ayitey said Coconut Grove demonstrated the viability of local sourcing, noting the hotel used about 9,000 locally sourced chickens monthly, unlike establishments that relied on imports.
Dr Nana Kweku Nduom, President of Groupe Nduom Ghana, said 2026 would be a pivotal year for Coconut Grove to showcase its three‐decade commitment to local products as a viable business model.
He noted that businesses like the Coconut Grove Regency Hotel were well positioned to leverage the 24‐hour economy and the Black Star Experience and called or rationalised tax collection and action to address systemic inefficiencies in sectors such as power transmission.
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