Number of orders per minute placed on Kenya’s Jumia platform rises

NAIROBI, KENYA: Jumia Kenya’s orders has surpassed those of other African markets of Nigeria, Egypt, Morocco, Ivory Coast, and South Africa.

The Kenyan subsidiary attributes the growth to Kenya’s rising e-commerce sector.

“We beat the formal record across Africa by 30 per cent,” said Jumia Kenya Managing Director Sam Chappatte.

The number of orders placed in one minutes jumped by 30 per cent. “From a technical perspective, what is quite difficult in online businesses is handling those big spikes,” said Chappatte, noting that such massive traffics have been known to crash websites.

“It is a good signal of how far how technology has come so far,” explained Chappatte.

It is also signal of the how e-commerca is picking up in Kenya, despite the challenges of distrust and poor turn-around time for orders placed.

A recent report by financial analysts at Citibank indicates that telecommunication service providers will invest billions of shillings in coming years to build infrastructure to facilitate payments and money transfers in e-commerce. 

It says Kenya’s e-commerce market could be worth more than Sh400 billion in the long term, and between Sh70 billion and Sh120 billion in the short to medium term, presenting a lucrative revenue opportunity for fintechs.

According to Citibank, investors in e-commerce platforms could earn a commanding lead in the market through early investment in data analytics and logistics management.

In the next three weeks, Jumia will be doing campaigns on why shopping online saves customers both money and time, with a special focus on key partner brands including bringing in exclusive deals every day.

The focus will also be on increased penetration of new areas, especially through opening of new pick-up stations, with the firm targeting to have 600 by the end of this year from the current 170.

As of last week, online shoppers in Eldoret started benefit from access to 20 new pick up stations, giving them access to lower delivery cost on over 6M products on the online platform. This will offer convenience to customers and save on cost as opposed to delivery fee. 

The new strategy of expanding pick-up stations around the country relies on an agency model, through which existing entrepreneurs earn up to Sh 20,000 by hosting Jumia pick up stations in their existing shops / facilities. The move is aimed at empowering SMEs by boosting their revenue and providing better services to the growing customer base in Eldoret and other cities. 

“We see a growing potential & many unserved customers in areas outside of Nairobi. In towns like Eldoret, our range of products and competitive pricing is even more relevant for customers. Our expanded pick up station network will enhance customer confidence and provide them a convenient shopping experience,” said Sam Chappatte, Jumia MD. 

Among the newly opened pick-up stations in Eldoret region, include Koibatek Uniforms, The Young Pioneer, Bargetuny Plaza and Loop Business Center. 

The move is expected to speed up the uptake of online shopping upcountry, providing opportunities for vendors countrywide. 

So far this year, Jumia has launched 150 agency pick up stations in Nairobi & surrounding areas. 

The announcement comes on the eve of Jumia’s 7th birthday sales campaign, dubbed Jumia Anniversary. This launches at 11:59pm on Sunday 23rd June, and will run for 3 weeks. 

Entrepreneurs who want to take part as Jumia sales consultant or pick up station agents should register online on the Jumia website.