Why We Invested: Boost
Ema, 30, owns and manages a small grocery store in the Ga East district of Accra. Her shop, called Ema’s Supermarket, is cash-only. She has to close her shop to go to the market three times a week, where she buys 100 products (from 10 different wholesalers) to stock her shelves. The business turns over $1,200 every month, and she makes $180 to support herself and her family of four. Ema has no access to any digital services–like or ordering stock or making and taking payments–or access to working capital. But, Ema dreams of keeping her shop open longer and growing her business.
For small entrepreneurs like Ema, making this a reality is almost impossible. This story repeats itself across the African continent. Our investment in Boost represents MCV’s belief that the inclusion of all businesses, SMEs especially, in the digital economy is critical to solving some of the most pervasive challenges on the continent.
Market Need
Micro, small, and medium enterprises employ 70% of Africa’s working population. In Ghana alone, there are 60,000 small community grocery stores — over 20% of them located in Accra and its sister city of Tema. Shop owners, many of them women, struggle to sustain and grow their businesses.
The vast majority of these shops are informal, unbanked, and cash-only.
While some shops use mobile money, their income is rarely tracked or known by financial service providers. This blind spot exacerbates owners’ already limited access to financial services and resources that could maximize their efficiency and increase their income. They also have to close their shops to spend hours each week buying their stock at the market. They have no power to negotiate fair prices from wholesalers, and no access to working capital to meet demand during busier periods.
It’s personally demoralizing for thousands of shop owners and a recipe for business stagnation.
The Boost Solution
Enter Boost. Boost was launched to help small businesses grow. Customers can use their mobile phones to find and order their stock (via WhatsApp) and have it delivered.
Boost aggregates mobile orders and buys from suppliers at a discount, guaranteeing shop owners the best prices for their goods. The company also offers stock advances, basically inventory credit, so shops can increase sales. From procurement to delivery, Boost utilizes its technology platform to ensure every step of the process is optimized for the retailer. In addition to the cheapest goods, Boost will also provide a suite of financial services to help entrepreneurs take their operations to the next level, including financial literacy training, inventory financing, insurance and business loans.
“I founded Boost with the mission of enabling millions of small businesses to thrive in Africa’s digital economy to create sustainable jobs and income.” — Mike Quinn Founder & CEO
Investment Rationale
We’ve seen the impacts of digitization and know that access to financial services is key to unlocking full productive potential. By going digital with Boost, shop owners will see a ripple effect of positive change: faster turnover, greater revenue, stronger livelihoods, and the creation of more jobs as shops grow. By supporting Boost, we aim to broaden financial inclusion, build income resilience, and transform the lives of female business owners throughout Africa — in Ghana, Nigeria and beyond. Investing in Boost will also help answer the call for safer, more efficient networks of delivery and distribution, able to continue serving local populations during crises like COVID-19.
