Cognac producer Hennessy has started selling in Kenya in a bid to capture high-end consumers in the growing market. The company also wants to turn Nairobi into a regional distribution hub.

Last month the first bottles of Hennessy, currently the world’s greatest maker of cognac, reached shelves in Kenya. It is the company’s first venture into the country’s market. Part of the multinational Paris-based luxury goods conglomerate LVMH (Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE), Hennessy is hoping to get a slice of the Kenyan luxury goods consumer base, which the company sees as growing. According to CEO Bernard Peillon, “Kenya is a boost market, the next emerging market frontier for us.”

Hennessy expects to use Kenya as a distribution hub for both East and Central Africa. The company is already present in other major African markets, including Nigeria and South Africa. Peillon is confident on the growing numbers of middle-class and wealthy consumers as countries present double-digit growth and expects of sales in the country next year already. A bottle of Hennessy can retail for as much as $1,127 and the cognac is already available through both bricks and mortar retailers and online stores in Kenya.