Cabinda.
Like Black Point in Belgium, Cabinda, the second-largest city on East Africa's West Coast, had become more prosperous than before the war, though its prosperity was clearly different from that of Black Point.
Black Point had mainly prospered because Belgians had fled there from the homeland, while Cabinda's growth came purely from trade. The number of East African merchant ships bound for Europe and South America had increased significantly. With Gabon still undeveloped, Cabinda was geographically East Africa's foremost gateway for trade with Western Europe and South America.
The First World War had not only thrown Europe into a seething mess; European influence had also withdrawn in other regions. Take South America, for example. Britain was now at war with Germany, creating a power vacuum in South America. The markets originally dominated by Britain, France, and Germany naturally had to make way for East Africa and the United States.
In this peaceful competition, East Africa seized an enormous advantage the moment it made its move. It had been preparing for this war for a long time.
The nearby Belgian colonial market was naturally also one of East Africa's targets. However, East Africa was in no hurry regarding Belgian Congo, because its arrangements there had begun earlier and were easier to implement.
Carson Department Store.
This was a private department store that had been registered for two years. Since East Africa had only recently opened its markets, Carson Department Store was already fairly large compared with the many private enterprises.
However, Carson Department Store, with only two years of development behind it, was clearly no match for the well-funded East African state-owned department stores. At present, its business had only just secured a certain share of the market in Cabinda City.
This was already an excellent achievement. Cabinda City was