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A new chapter is beginning for Castelli Restaurant, one of Africa’s oldest and most iconic dining establishments, as investment firm Addera injects fresh capital and assumes majority ownership and management control. The founding Castelli family will remain involved as minority shareholders, marking a carefully managed transition for a business that has operated continuously since 1948.

Sources close to the deal told Capital that the Castelli family, which has run the restaurant for three generations, is gradually stepping back as the owners grow older. An uncle in the family is retiring due to old age, and the younger generation has opted to bring in external capital and professional management to secure the restaurant’s future.

Under the new arrangement, Addera has injected capital into the business and taken over day-to-day management. The Castelli family will continue as minority shareholders, while Addera becomes the majority shareholder and assumes responsibility for running the restaurant. The sources declined to disclose the size of the investment.

According to the insiders, the investors’ stated intention is to preserve Castelli’s traditions and culinary identity while addressing operational and infrastructural issues that have accumulated over the decades.

Castelli Restaurant, located on Mahatma Gandhi Street in the historic Piassa district of Addis Ababa, was founded in 1948 by Francesco Castelli, an Italian soldier who arrived in Ethiopia in the mid-1930s as part of the Italian military occupation. When the colonial era collapsed, he chose to stay rather than return to Italy.

Housed in an unassuming 1930s building with a plain exterior and no flashy signage, Castelli has become a landmark less for its façade than for what lies within. Stepping inside reveals a timeless, old-world interior: small wood-floored rooms, white tablecloths and classic furnishings that have changed very little over the decades.

The kitchen specialises in authentic, scratch-made Italian dishes, serving signature homemade pastas, fresh seafood salads, osso buco and an expansive antipasto display. Over the years, the establishment has grown from a humble local tavern into a world-famous culinary institution, frequented by international diplomats, writers and celebrities—including Hilary Clinton, Bob Geldof, Bono, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt.

Run across generations by the Castelli family, the restaurant remains a deeply cherished symbol of the unique historical ties between Italy and Addis Ababa.

News of the ownership change has sparked conversation in Addis Ababa’s culinary and business circles, where Castelli is viewed not only as a restaurant but as part of the city’s heritage. For many longtime patrons, the key question is whether new management can modernise operations without diluting the character that has defined Castelli for more than seven decades.

The sources who spoke to Capital emphasised that the investors are aware of the restaurant’s symbolic value. They said the plan is to “continue with the traditions of the restaurant” while fixing underlying issues that have emerged over time.

Details on the structure of the deal, the exact shareholding split and the identity of Addera’s ultimate beneficial owners were not disclosed. The parties have not yet issued a joint public statement.

The Shoe Paradox

Business & Economy

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September 6, 2026

Business management has an enduring fascination with the idea of fit. We recruit the right person for the right job, design strategies that fit market conditions, create cultures that fit organisational values and develop products that fit customer needs. At first glance, this appears self-evidently sensible. After all, an ill-fitting shoe is uncomfortable, inefficient and ultimately damaging. Yet herein lies what might be called the Shoe Paradox which is the management practices that create a perfect fit today can become the very constraints that prevent an organisation from moving successfully tomorrow.

The paradox is simple. A shoe that fits perfectly is valuable because it provides support. But a shoe designed for walking is not necessarily suitable for running, climbing or dancing. The problem is not that the shoe is defective; the problem is that circumstances have changed. Business leaders repeatedly make the equivalent mistake of assuming that because a structure, employee, strategy or process once fitted the organisation, it should continue to fit indefinitely.

This is a particularly important lesson in modern management. Organisations increasingly operate in environments characterised by technological disruption, shifting consumer expectations and uncertain competitive conditions. The traditional managerial instinct is to reduce uncertainty by strengthening systems, clarifying roles and standardising behaviour. Yet excessive standardisation can create organisational rigidity. As Harvard Business Review has argued in discussing changing organisational structures, modern firms have increasingly moved away from rigid hierarchies towards more flexible arrangements because adaptability has become a critical managerial capability.

The Shoe Paradox therefore challenges one of management’s most comfortable assumptions that consistency is always a virtue. Consider the employee. Recruitment frequently focuses on “cultural fit”. Organisations seek people who share existing values, communicate in familiar ways and appear comfortable within established norms. This can improve cohesion in the short term. Teams with shared assumptions often experience less friction and can make decisions more quickly. However, taken too far, cultural fit becomes intellectual conformity. The organisation stops hiring people who challenge its assumptions and instead recruits increasingly similar individuals.

The shoe fits, but eventually everyone is walking in the same direction. A healthier management philosophy is therefore to balance fit with productive misfit. Organisations need employees who can work within the system but are also willing to question it. Leadership research similarly warns against the simplistic imitation of successful managerial personalities. Effective leadership requires authenticity rather than the mechanical adoption of someone else’s style. A leadership approach that fits one individual, organisation or moment may be entirely inappropriate elsewhere.

The same paradox applies to organisational strategy. Companies often become successful because they identify a distinctive business model and execute it exceptionally well. The danger begins when managers confuse a successful strategy with an eternal truth. The organisation develops routines, performance indicators and incentive systems around yesterday’s winning formula. Gradually, strategic discipline becomes strategic blindness.

History is full of businesses that failed not because they lacked competence but because they became too competent at something the market no longer valued. Their shoes were extremely well made. Unfortunately, they were wearing them to the wrong destination.

This is why managers should distinguish between core capabilities and core rigidities. A capability is valuable because it enables an organisation to create value. A rigidity emerges when that same capability prevents managers from recognising alternatives. Operational efficiency, for example, can become an obstacle to experimentation. A powerful brand can discourage diversification. A strong corporate culture can make dissent appear disloyal.

The managerial challenge is not simply to choose between stability and change. It is to manage both simultaneously. This is the deeper significance of paradox in management. Many organisational problems cannot be permanently “solved” because they involve competing demands that remain interconnected. Businesses must pursue efficiency and innovation, global consistency and local responsiveness, employee autonomy and managerial control. Research on organisational paradox has emphasised the importance of working through such tensions rather than assuming they can simply be eliminated.

The Shoe Paradox offers a practical metaphor for this approach. Managers should not ask, “Which shoe is correct?” They should ask, “What journey are we taking, and what capabilities will we need along the way?” This shift has significant implications for performance management. Traditional systems frequently reward predictability. Employees are praised for meeting targets, following procedures and minimising deviation. These measures are useful, but they can unintentionally punish experimentation. An employee who follows an established process efficiently may receive a higher performance evaluation than one who identifies a better process but experiences temporary failure while testing it. The result is a dangerous organisational message: stay in your shoes, even when you can see the road changing.

Managers must instead create what might be called adaptive fit. This means designing roles and systems that provide enough structure for accountability while preserving enough flexibility for learning. Roles should define responsibilities without becoming prisons. Strategy should establish direction without eliminating experimentation. Corporate culture should create shared purpose without demanding identical thinking.

The innovation challenge is particularly revealing. Large organisations often struggle to balance the advantages of scale with the need for entrepreneurial experimentation. Management literature on innovation has long argued that leaders must learn to embrace apparently contradictory demands as “and” challenges rather than treating them as simple “either/or” choices. The question is not whether a company should be efficient or innovative. It must determine how to remain sufficiently efficient to survive while sufficiently innovative to remain relevant.

There is also a personal lesson for managers. Leadership itself can become an ill-fitting shoe. A management style that succeeds during a crisis may be destructive during a period of stability. The decisive, centralised leader who saves an organisation from collapse may later prevent capable employees from exercising initiative. Conversely, the collaborative leader who thrives in a creative environment may struggle when rapid and unpopular decisions are required.

Good managers therefore practise situational humility. They recognise that success does not permanently validate their methods. They understand that experience is valuable, but experience can also become a filter through which new realities are misinterpreted. The most effective organisations are not those that constantly throw away their shoes in pursuit of novelty. Nor are they those that insist on wearing the same pair forever. They are organisations capable of knowing what to preserve, what to modify and what to abandon.

Ultimately, the Shoe Paradox exposes a fundamental weakness in conventional business thinking. The tendency to treat fit as a destination rather than a temporary condition. The right organisational structure, strategy or leadership style is rarely universally right. It is right within a particular context.

Managers should therefore become suspicious of anything that fits too comfortably for too long. Comfort can be evidence of competence. But in business, it can also be evidence that the organisation has stopped moving. The future belongs not to companies that find the perfect shoe, but to those capable of recognising when the journey has changed and having the courage to change what they are wearing.

Addis Raw turns Addis Ababa’s architecture into Wearable Art

Arts and Culture

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September 6, 2026

Addis Raw turns Addis Ababa’s architecture into Wearable Art

Bezawit “Beza” Tibebu is reshaping the landscape of contemporary fashion by merging her foundational training in architecture with traditional Ethiopian craftsmanship. Long before establishing the Tibebu Collection, Beza learned to study the built environment, noting spatial rhythms, structural lines and the silent storytelling embedded within architecture.

Today, she has shifted her canvas from static buildings to the human body, using local handwoven fabrics to bridge local roots with an international creative vision.

Transitioning from architecture to fashion was not a sharp pivot, but rather a shift in scale. While architectural principles such as proportion, balance, structure and texture remained constant, fashion introduced movement and mobility. Beza views clothing not as an isolated item, but as part of a dynamic visual world connected to places, memories and materials. At the core of the Tibebu Collection lies a commitment to creating locally while thinking globally.

By utilising Ethiopian handwoven textiles and local production, the brand challenges how traditional materials are perceived, integrating them into sharply structured silhouettes that fit seamlessly into modern wardrobes anywhere in the world.

This design philosophy finds its most explicit expression in Addis Raw, an experimental collection that translates the iconic architecture of Addis Ababa into wearable art. Rather than merely imitating buildings, the design process deconstructs the city’s architectural elements — turning lines into silhouettes, geometry into patterns and structures into construction details. Through this collection, familiar urban landmarks are reframed as sources of form and movement, transforming the city street into a runway.

The success of Addis Raw extends far beyond local borders. The collection was presented at African Fashion Week London, bringing the architectural identity of Addis Ababa to an international fashion audience. By presenting Ethiopian creativity as conceptual and experimental rather than confined to traditional tropes, the brand demonstrated that local design can compete on global runways.

This international momentum is further underscored by features in Vogue Italia and Vogue USA, which have placed the brand within wider global fashion conversations. These milestones challenge the assumption that high-end fashion must originate elsewhere, proving that a collection can be conceptualised, woven and produced in Addis Ababa while resonating with global audiences.

Ultimately, the Tibebu Collection transcends the traditional boundaries of a fashion label, incorporating elements of cinematography, art and structural form. Beza’s ongoing work highlights how Ethiopia’s rich textile heritage can remain relevant to new generations by refusing to choose between heritage and innovation. By allowing Ethiopian creativity to define itself on its own terms, the brand continues to build a unique visual language where buildings become silhouettes, cities become collections and local craftsmanship finds new global possibilities.

Aman Properties Makes Its Public Debut and Announces Aman Addis Expo 2026

Capital News

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September 3, 2026

Aman Properties Makes Its Public Debut and Announces Aman Addis Expo 2026

PRESS RELEASE / ADVERTORIAL

New Life, Lafto Life and Sky View Properties unite under one name — and open the New Year with 250 homes at up to 30% off at Laphto Mall, September 4–7

ADDIS ABABA, 2 September 2026 — Aman Properties made its public debut in Addis Ababa today, marking a new chapter for a company with five years of experience in Ethiopia’s real estate sector and three development sites already delivered. At a press conference attended by local media, the company officially introduced its brand and announced Aman Addis Expo 2026, a four-day real estate expo running from September 4 to 7 at Laphto Mall, Bisrate Gebriel.

The new brand brings together New Life Properties, Lafto Life Properties and Sky View Properties under one unified identity — uniting their experience, their delivered developments and their future vision under a single name. Through these three companies, Aman Properties has already made more than 300 households home and shop owners across Addis Ababa, and has fully handed over three sites and more than 56 modern villas.

“Five years of experience have built the foundation. Aman Properties brings that experience together under one name, with a stronger structure and a clear plan for what comes next,” said Ato Biniyam Wondimu, Chief Executive Officer of Aman Properties. He confirmed that three new projects are under construction in Kazanchis and Bisrate Gebriel, and that preparations are complete to launch several additional projects in the 2019 Ethiopian year.

Built on a Different Foundation

Aman Properties is part of Amanet Group, which has operated in Ethiopia’s trade, manufacturing and technology sectors for the past 10 years. Unlike many developers, the company is backed by its own construction firm and has direct access to construction materials. In a market where buyers are too often left waiting, this allows Aman Properties to deliver faster, quality construction and to offer its customers a distinctive, flexible payment arrangement.

Its flagship development in Bisrate Gebriel introduces a residential community directly connected to Laphto Mall, one of the city’s most popular lifestyle destinations, known for its cinema, swimming pool, restaurants and fitness facilities. In Kazanchis, one of Addis Ababa’s most vibrant commercial districts, the company is developing a twin-tower mixed-use project — commercial space on the first five floors, modern residential apartments above — close to major business centres, international organisations and key city landmarks.

Aman Addis Expo 2026: A New Year. A New Beginning. A New Home.

The expo comes as Ethiopia prepares to welcome the New Year — a season traditionally associated with fresh beginnings and new possibilities. For many families, a new year means setting new priorities: creating a better home, taking the first step toward homeownership, or making a considered investment for the years ahead.

At Aman Addis Expo, 250 homes will be offered with New Year discounts of 15 to 30 percent. Ato Bekalu Endashaw, Sales and Marketing Manager at Aman Properties, said the offer was designed with middle-income families in mind — to bring homeownership within reach for those who have been waiting for
the right moment. The homes on offer are part of mixed-use apartment projects under construction beside Laphto Mall, near Bisrate Gebriel Ol-Mart, and in Kazanchis.

From Friday to Monday, visitors can discover Aman Properties’ developments, meet the team, ask questions and explore real estate opportunities in one place. Particular attention will be given to the Kazanchis and Bisrate Gebriel developments, with the sales team on hand to walk prospective buyers through locations, unit options, discounts and payment plans before any decision is made.

For prospective homeowners, families and property investors, it is a chance to take a closer look at what is available and have direct conversations with the people building it. And for those already familiar with projects delivered under New Life, Lafto Life and Sky View, it is an opportunity to see the next chapter of that journey — now under one unified identity.

Because choosing a home is not simply about finding a property. It is about finding the right place for the life you want to build. With its public debut now complete, Aman Properties is preparing to welcome Addis Ababa to its first major public event as a unified brand.

Aman Addis Expo 2026

Real Estate Expo by Aman Properties
Laphto Mall, Bisrate Gebriel, Addis Ababa📍
Friday 4 – Monday 7 September 2026 (Nehase 29 – Pagume 2, 2018 E.C.)📅
250 homes • 15–30% New Year discount • Flexible payment options🏠
Short code 8077

https://www.amanpropertiesaddis.com

A New Year. A New Beginning. A New Home.

About Aman Properties — Aman Properties is the real estate brand of Amanet Group, formed by bringing New Life Properties, Lafto Life Properties and Sky View Properties under one name. Backed by its own construction company, it develops residential and mixed-use properties in Addis Ababa, including projects in Bisrate Gebriel and Kazanchis. For more information, visit an Aman Properties sales centre or call short code 8077. Aman Properties — Your Property in Safe Hands.