South African Coating Product Enters Kenya Promising to Outlast Paint and Tile Refurbishment Cycles

A version of this article appeared in The Standard.

Hotel owners in Nairobi know the cycle well. Every two to three years, walls need recoating, floors need resurfacing and the cost of maintaining finishes that looked good at handover starts eating into margins. It is a problem that cuts across high-end hospitality, commercial spaces and residential developments alike.

Pavilion Master Builders is pitching a different approach. The Kenyan firm has partnered with South Africa's Mixx Cement Company to introduce Mixx Cement to the Kenyan market, a premium thin-film, cement-based coating system designed to create seamless, concrete-like finishes on walls, floors and furniture without the maintenance cycle that conventional finishes demand.

The product was launched in Nairobi on May 21, 2026, with training sessions for local builders and contractors running alongside the launch.

Mixx Cement functions as a micro-cement system that bonds to multiple rigid surfaces including tiles, glass, melamine and wood. The material is mixed into a slurry and applied either by roller for a smooth finish or by trowel for a textured architectural effect. Once cured, the surface is sealed with a polyurethane layer that protects against stains, moisture and ultraviolet damage, making it suitable for wet areas, outdoor spaces and high-traffic environments. It can be applied directly over previously painted surfaces, tiled floors or cement walls without the need for removal or extensive preparation.

Mixx Cement South Africa Chief Executive Officer Moya Blight, who was present at the Nairobi launch, said the product comes in two wall variants, one for interior use and one for exterior applications. Blight noted that hotels and lodges using the product had reported significantly longer intervals between refurbishments compared to conventional coatings. The company has been active in Southern Africa, where Simon Pogson, marketing director at Africa Supplies Limited in the United Kingdom, described it as tried, tested and trusted.

Pavilion Master Builders Chief Executive Officer James Kimotho said the company's approach goes beyond product supply. Each sale is supported by technical training for the builders and contractors applying the material, addressing one of the persistent gaps in Kenya's construction finishing market, where new materials are often introduced without the application knowledge required to deliver the intended result.

The product enters a market where interior and exterior finishes represent a significant and recurring cost for developers and building owners. Kenya's construction sector continues to grow rapidly, but the quality and durability of finishes remains an area where developers regularly absorb costs that were not factored into original budgets.