Tales from Isalẹ́ Eko

At the start of the business day, I wandered through the various markets in Lagos Island (Isalẹ́ Eko) on a quest to find participants for CcHUB's Fintech InMarket program; a program aimed at training and mentoring traditional merchants to understand and conduct business on E-commerce platforms. As I leapt over puddles of mud, avoided multiple danfo's zooming past me, whilst trying not to yield to the pleas of patronage from over 10 merchants at a given time, I was overwhelmed by the bustling activity that hardly subsided as I waltzed through the different markets.

The value exchange that takes place in markets like those in Lagos island is never ending, as the exit of one customer is almost instantly replaced by the entrance of another. Hundreds of merchants exist and hundreds of customers match up to the existing supply in the markets. As I walked through Idumota market, I observed three trends amongst numerous businesses:

1. Product diversification : Diversification of existing product lines to keep up with changing consumer trends and preferences.

2. Substantial amounts of Inventory: Wholesale /bulk quantities of products.

3. Long term business experience and success: Prevalence of successful trans-generational entrepreneurship.

The above mentioned business trends make these merchants ideal E-commerce vendors; they have a wide range of products that are heavily demanded by consumers, they have these products in large quantities and can therefore meet large demand with minimal delays and disappointments, and lastly they understand that their customer is key, and will ultimately do what needs to be done to sell and sell some more! Traditional merchants are heavily sales-oriented as a bid to ensure the longevity, so the argument of an increase in bottom line, and access to millions of customers as incentives to join the E-commerce space should have been convincing enough for the merchants to sign up to our InMarket program, right?

As it so turned out, the answer was NO!! After speaking to approximately 100 merchants across Mandilas, Balogun & Idumota markets, only 22% saw some sort of need for the program and registered their interest. The remaining 78% of the sample were crippled by the following fears:

1. Lack of understanding of the concept of E-commerce
2. Lack of Trust in the promised value for their businesses.
3. Fear of showcasing products on public platforms due to the fear of design imitation and loss of competitive advantage.
4. Inconvenience associated with the time and effort required to join E-Commerce platforms and fulfill customers' orders

According to McKinsey Global Institute estimates, Nigerian consumers spent over four hundred billion dollars ($400 billion) in 2014[1]. Jumia, arguably Nigeria’s biggest e-commerce player earned revenue of $140 million in 2015, showing that majority of Nigeria’s commerce still happens offline[2]. Through InMarket, we aim to onboard traditional merchants' businesses onto existing E-commerce marketplaces, and equip them with the necessary tools and resources required to operate successfully in the E-commerce space, by linking them with relevant digital marketing and logistics partners. The ultimate goal for the merchants is not just to operate business in the E-commerce space, but to understand the interactions between the different E-commerce ecosystem players, and ultimately, trust the system.

Transitioning to new methods comes with its challenges, however;

“You’ll never find a rainbow if you’re looking down”