The Comparable Ep 9: b2b E-Commerce in West Africa & LATAM
A spotlight on OmniRetail in West Africa & Chiper in LATAM
Happy November! We’re already on episode NINE of The Comparable, which means we only have one (or two) more episodes left for our first season. For this episode, we decided to spotlight b2b e-commerce, a sector in emerging markets. that attracted a lot of international venture capital in 2021/2022 (~ $7.1 billion in 2021, second only to fintech).
In emerging markets, b2b “business to business” e-commerce platforms service the millions of small retailers and corner shops that power many of these economies. In Africa, the informal retail sector accounts for ~ 90% of transactions in Nigeria, 96% in Ghana & 70% in Kenya. In Latin America, there are over 3.7M corner stores that generate an annual revenue of $330 billion. While these small businesses account for a tremendous amount of transactions and commerce in these markets, these small businesses owners face a number of challenges in staying competitive, with major inefficiencies including fragmented distribution networks, limited access to working capital, unreliable logistics, and a lack of transparency in their supply chains.
Digital platforms and marketplaces rose as a way to solve for these inefficiencies, digitizing and streamlining interactions among manufacturers, distributors, and retailers, allowing them to buy and sell goods and services to one another online, instead of through traditional, offline channels. These platforms streamline procurement, logistics, and payments, connecting informal and formal retailers more directly with brands, large suppliers, or manufacturers. This process removes intermediaries, reduces costs, improves efficiency, and often provides additional services such as delivery and credit.
In this episode, we highlight OmniRetail operating in West Africa (Nigeria, Ghana & the Ivory Coast) & Chiper in LATAM (Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, Chile & Venezuela), not only as two leading b2b e-commerce plays in their respective markets, but as two companies that have demonstrated adaptability & resilience amidst the highs & lows of the last few years.
You can listen/watch this great episode with OmniRetail Founder Deepankar Rustagi & Chiper Co-founder Jose Bonilla on YouTube, Spotify, and/or Apple.