Africa e-commerce market hugely untapped with potential for growth, says Jumia chairwoman

The Jumia Nigeria Chairwoman, Juliet Anammah has stated that there’s still a lot to explore in the African e-commerce market, as e-commerce on the continent is still about five percent of the total retail.

Anammah stated this while speaking on a monitored interview with Darius Teeter of Stanford Seed, stating that more tech companies are trooping into the African market, thus opening up more possibilities in the e-commerce space.

Statista puts the number of digital buyers in Africa at 281 million in 2020, estimating an increase to 520 million by 2025. However, the current number of active users on Africa’s largest e-commerce platform stands at seven million, thus showing the huge market gap yet to be explored on the continent.

Between 2014 and 2018, the number of online shoppers on the African continent was said to have increased annually, at an average growth rate of 18 percent, higher than the global average of 12 percent.

However, to deepen market share across Nigeria, Jumia is offering consumers free delivery on Jumia Express orders as the company pushes its ‘Free Delivery’ campaign aimed at incentivising consumers to shop daily on the platform within Lagos and Abuja.

“All said and done, we are the largest e-commerce platform on the continent, and you are on the continent where e-commerce is still 2-5% of total retail, which is a huge upside.

This is a huge area to focus on rather than look into new verticals. Now we are deepening our footprints within the countries we are in, and we are for now concentrating on those 11 countries,” said Anammah, stating that the company hopes to close the gap by expanding footprints in its current verticals.

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Given the vast untapped market, e-commerce brands deploy innovative ways to explore the unique African business terrain. Jumia has the JForce network that helps push online shopping services in rural communities.

The company recently expanded its footprints by taking hubs and pickup stations closer to customers in different communities across Nigeria.

“We are working to bring more sellers and brands to the platform. Another area we want to focus on is the shift from high-value products to everyday products, essentials and consumables. That’s where we are deepening our presence.

“We already saw sales of consumables growing on our platform. Last year we saw that sugar and pears had record sales in some countries, unlike before where it might have been an electronic product,” Anammah said on Jumia’s initiatives to further deepen market reach and acceptance.

Massimiliano Spalazzi, CEO, Jumia Nigeria, said the free delivery deal on Jumia will be valid for all Jumia Express (items stored at the Jumia warehouse) orders above N4, 999 in Lagos and Abuja, excluding large items.

According to him, the campaign being one of the first for the year, is among several initiatives the company is putting together to encourage consumers to continue shopping on the platform while enjoying a rewarding online shopping experience.

“We want Nigerians to conveniently shop online without having to worry about delivery fees. That is why we are introducing the cost-saving promo to enable them to buy more while spending less,” said Spalazzi.