DACAPO, one of Lusaka’s most popular restaurant and night spot, is aiming to have its new outlet ready within two months after the closure of operations at its previous location in East Park Mall.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with the Zambian Business Times – ZBT, DACAPO owner Dimi Lerodiakonou said the decision to relocate to showgrounds comes following the indefinite closure of operations at East Park, which has left over 130 DACAPO employees without a job.
DACAPO has also expressed its determination to provide a new home for its employees and continue its business operations.
According to the court documents seen by the Zambian Business Times – ZBT, the newly opened Cargo Hotel Limited Commonly known as Cargo 88 Hotel dragged Dacapo Coffee Bar & lounge to court on claims that its operations at East Park Mall in Lusaka were disturbing it’s business operations.
DACAPO has however expressed disbelief over the allegations that DACAPO’s operations at East Park had resulted in a loss of business for others questioning how they had lost business when they only opened in 2023 and DACAPO was operational from as far back as 2019.
Asked about what extent has the business been affected after the order of closure, Dimi said “my priority is our employees because as you know, in Zambia one person feeds five, so if you take 130 employees out of their jobs overnight, it affects more than just those employees but we are going to re-build the business and find a new home for the employees.”
He said in two months a new Dacapo outlet should be ready, “so we are pushing, trying to get things done but like I said we just want to carry on with our operations and continue as we are not at any sort of war.”
“DACAPO right now, we are moving into show grounds were we are trying to set up our new place with our customers. We have been affected because we have about 130 employees that were employed and so we have to build them a new home, not only for my staff but also for my clientele.”
DACAPO remains optimistic about the future, stating, “We are pushing forward and we are hoping that very soon everything will fall back into play.”
