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JU M IA

Capitalising on the lucrative and increasingly competitive ecommerce www.jumia.com.ng

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Africa’s Leading

EPcommerce latform ounded in May 2012 as an ecommerce platform designed to bring unrivalled, quality commodity choices to the emerging middle-class African consumer, Jumia has combined blue-sky thinking with considerable market research in order to bring better convenience and reliability to the African retail scene. Initially launching in Nigeria and Morocco three years ago, Co-CEO, Nicolas Martin says that he was driven by the idea to bring ecommerce to Africa “in a big way”, starting with two of the largest economies in North and West Africa. “The growth of access to data and consequently, access to the internet, in combination with the prospering Nigerian economy, provided the perfect platform for our ecommerce offering,” he highlights. “Jumia brings competitive pricings, choice, convenience and a flexible supply chain for reliable delivery of goods. We feel all of these dimensions can be of benefit to the African consumer.” Part of Africa Internet Group (AIG), which has a presence in more than 30 African countries via 10 other online service companies, Jumia shares the Group’s mission for the rollout of a successful internet business model. Today, the Company is the largest

Jumia is experiencing exponential growth of its ecommerce platform as it strives to become the most renowned, leading platform for retail trade on the continent Writer: Emily Jarvis • Project Manager: Donovan Smith

Nicolas Martin, Co-CEO, Jumia

online retail store in Nigeria - with 2,000 staff in this country alone - and is well on its way to achieving the same leading status in 11 other countries across Africa.

infrastructure gap that many African nations are facing on the ground. “Compare the US and Europe’s retail infrastructure with the likes of the Africa’s for example and there are some big differences, as well as some consumer similarities which are just waiting to be explored. The average African consumer is not used to having a wide choice of branded products, which makes Jumia’s offering incomparable with the limited choice in a retail shop,” explains Martin. Less than five percent of Nigeria’s retail shops are owned by a national or international chain of stores, the rest are independently-owned businesses and this can have an effect on the price charged for commodities, but also on the reliability of supply and the quality of the final product.

Value proposition

Deploying Jumia’s ecommerce platform in Nigeria’s most populous city, Lagos – reported to have a population of 21 million in 2014 – showcased the true potential and demand for this retail service, further leapfrogging the physical retail

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J U M I A

LUMINOUS POWER TECHNOLOGIES LTD

ounded in 1988, Luminous Power Technologies (P) Limited is a leading global company with a differentiated portfolio of solutions for packaged power, diversified generation, electrical control & safety and energy optimization. With over 5000 employees, 8 manufacturing units, 28 sales offices and more than 60000 channel partners spread across 39 countries; Luminous apart from its dominating position in the domestic market also has a strong foothold worldwide. Awarded with the ‘Global Superbrand’ status for the year 2011-12 & again in 2014-15, ISO 50001:2011 certification and MNRE: CRISIL recognition, Luminous is passionately committed to bring uninterruptible and alternate power solutions to the customers that makes their life comfortable and efficient.

Investing in its processes to ensure its ecommerce platform utilises professional and efficient technologies

Another advantage of ecommerce is that of convenience, as many potential customers have to travel a long way to be able to access retail, and even then there may be no available parking due to popularity, and the choice may not be what they were expecting. Martin notes: “Jumia is now a pricesetter for the market, offering home delivery services nationwide not just in Nigeria, but every country which we currently operate in. Moreover, we are able to offer a convenient service and consistent availability of a quality product range at an affordable price point.” Currently, Nigeria accounts for roughly half of Jumia’s revenue due to its substantial GDP and a large population of internet-savvy consumers. “And we were right to move into this market,” he adds. “Jumia Nigeria has witnessed lightening speed growth fuelled by our investments to expand the business, and to this day it remains the market

Jérémy Doutté, Co-CEO, Jumia

with the biggest potential. “Ultimately, ecommerce has the ability to leapfrog some of the major retail infrastructure challenges in Africa, and Jumia is one such platform that has an excellent value proposition executed across some of the continent’s most developed countries,” he further highlights.

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Wandel International (Nigeria) Limited, flagship company of the Simba Group operating in Nigeria since 1987, is the nation’s foremost Green Technology solutions provider in the field of alternative energy power back up solutions with Luminous brand of Power Back up products viz. inverters/ UPS and batteries across Nigeria. Over the years, the Simba Group has grown to become a leading and diversified business entity with operations spread across Nigeria’s key verticals including communications, agriculture, software, transportation, power and alternative energy. Luminous inverters and UPS are empowering businesses across industries viz. Retail stores, IT & telecoms, banks, corporate offices, home offices, data centres, shopping malls, and renewable & alternate energy industry. At the heart of our value proposition, is our commitment to service, and it is our relentless pursuit of extraordinary customer service that sets us apart from our competitors in each of our respective fields. In Nigeria, Luminous is supported by Simba Service that is an award winning Customer Service Response Team, based in key locations across Nigeria, is highly trained to address and resolve any technical issue with the shortest response time.

J U M I A

Big investment

As a young startup Company, Jumia is continually investing in its processes and equipment to ensure that its ecommerce platform utilises professional and efficient technologies so as to continue to function as it should. One such investment was to overcome the lack of trust African consumers have in the internet, with many having the preconception that it is littered with scams and fraudulent services. “To tackle this problem and increase customer trust, we made the Jumia delivery service cash on delivery. Not only could the customer be assured that their product would arrive, but they can check the quality of the product before paying; which unlocked growth for us in a big way,” Martin explains. In addition to internal technology investments, the Company has employed sales agents who not only

Sales agents educate customers on Jumia products

introduce the public to Jumia, but also educate the customer in what it means to be online. Martin details: “Dubbed the ‘J-Force’, our teams operate as an enabling platform to bring more people online in a market where ecommerce is only just beginning. Thus, it is important to ensure we interact with our customers, as opposed to having an invisible online presence, in order to help our customers discover what ecommerce is all about and how they can benefit from it.”

Last year, Jumia launched in Cameroon, Africa’s 13th largest economy. “In order to make this strategic decision, we had to ask ourselves whether there was the potential to secure rapid growth in line with our business goals. “We wanted to make sure we partner with the right vendors to provide good quality, branded products that can cater for demand, while also adapting our business model for the business environment. Additionally, the local vendors themselves can also benefit from increased access to a country-wide market, where they can set their own price and other key details. “And it was our preparation leading up to the launch that made our move into Cameroon one of the fastest launches we have experienced,” says Martin.

Local vendors can benefit from access to a country-wide market by choosing Jumia as a selling platform

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The Jumia Nigeria team is comprised of 2,000 staff

Capitalising on opportunity

Jumia strives to become the biggest retailer and the most renowned platform for trade in not just Nigeria, but in Africa. It has already earned its status as the biggest ecommerce platform in many of its countries of operation. The Company’s next challenge is to keep on-track with its rapid expansion plans in some of Africa’s most developed markets, something which Martin says Jumia has “only scratched the surface” of. He concludes: “With the support of my Co-CEO, Jérémy Doutté the potential customer reach and product range for Jumia is huge. Two brains are better than one in a fast moving and complex business environment. To put things in perspective, we are growing much faster than Alibaba or Amazon’s in their best uptake year. And despite challenge, we can see that we are facing a massive opportunity and we want to stay at the forefront, doing what we know how to.”

Jumia locations Morocco Egypt Senegal Ghana Ivory Coast Kenya Nigeria Cameroon South Africa Myanmar Bangladesh Pakistan

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JUMIA NIGERIA 109 Adeniyi Jones Avenue Ikeja Lagos Nigeria T: +234 1 460 4400 | +234 700 6000 000 E: service@jumia.com.ng