Having launched just two years ago in Nigeria with a few hundred merchants, Kaymu today enables over thirty thousand businesses and individuals to buy and sell online.
Nigeria’s e-commerce market is developing rapidly and is estimated to be worth $10 billion annually. Not surprisingly this is a hugely competitive market with Jumia, Konga and classified sites such as Mobofree all competing for Africa’s biggest growth market.
Appsafrica.com caught up with Evangeline Wiles, Managing Director of Kaymu Nigeria to hear the latest ecommerce growth story and you can watch the full interview below. Backed by Africa Internet Group, Kaymu offers an online market service that enables businesses and individuals to sell items across multiple African markets.
Education is key
Nigerians are very excited about selling online but don’t necessarily have the tools to deliver once they scale up.”Our job is educate both the buyers and the sellers about selling online and Kaymu educates users on the importance of customer service, logistics and managing orders” explains Wiles.
In a country where mobile money has yet to gain large traction, cash is still king and Nigerian buyers like cash on delivery. Wiles adds that “80-90% of payments are cash on delivery, buyers like that and it gives them trust in the system”. Kaymu also offer escrow accounts for customers with Kaymu a trusted intermediary for both parties which overcomes some of the barriers in a new online world.
Among the huge variety of categories on Kaymu, fashion and electronics are most popular according to Wiles, with a large percentage of male buyers purchasing t-shirts and jeans online. Mobile phones not surprisingly are very popular, with smartphones and feature phones selling well online as “Nigerians are in love with mobile phones.”