Gomarket, an online shopping platform, has kicked off operations in Nigeria’s commercial hub, Lagos, to satisfy shop–savvy customers across the country
The online platform was designed to help the country’s increasing population easily navigate everyday buying and selling from physical markets in Lagos while in the comfort of their homes.
“We saw a habit of shopping in Nigerians hence we decided to create an online platform that would make it easier. However the big game for us is that we follow the customer throughout the life cycle of the product from offering to maintenance,” Anthony Nwosa, chief executive officer for Gomarket, said at the launching of the platform in Lagos.
Nigeria is Africa’s most populous nation, home to some 200 million people, all of whom are expected to satisfy the basic need of life, from clothing, shelter and feeding.
Since the emergence of online shopping in Nigeria, there has been an influx of quite a number of players within the sector.
The current E-commerce spending in Nigeria is estimated at $12 billion, and is projected to reach $75 billion in revenues per annum by 2025, according to global consulting firm McKinsey.
Desperate to make a mark within this rapidly growing industry, GoMarket seeks to address situations that complete that perfect shopping experience while adding value and empowering its customers and all stakeholders alike.
The firm aims to support small and medium Size traders and farmers by helping them reach customers all over Nigeria and beyond. All the items sold on the platform will come from local markets and farms that would otherwise not have had the visibility and reach.
Kicking off its first operation in Lagos, the firm currently has merchants and physical presence across major cities across the states including Alaba International, Trade fair, Ikorodu, Ogudu , Ladipo, Mile 12 amongst others; it hopes to scale operations into other countries of the world and on-board more merchants into its platform to meet the growing demand of its customers .
In addition to supporting traders, GoMarket has created more than 50 direct and indirect jobs and continue steadily on the path to help solve Nigeria’s unemployment crisis.
“We understand that one Nigerian life is tied to several others and so empowering one means putting food on the table for many. We don’t take our people for granted,” Nwosa said.
By breaking ground into the market, the firm would stand alongside e-commerce giants in the likes of Konga, Jumia and Jiji, to scramble for consumers pocket.
For Gomarket, the firm would create a niche for its quality of service, flexibility and convenience, Nwosah noted.
“We did not come into the market to compete with other players because we believe that the Nigerian e-commerce industry is still largely untapped and full of potentials,”
The firm would operate a policy where buyers would be made to commit a particular amount depending on the orders before the goods would be shipped to them.
The reason the online shopping firm said was basically to protect small traders by building trust and ensuring that all the parties involved in the value chain feel some level of comfort.
Chuka Anidi, chief operating officer for the firm said, the vision of the firm is to be a leader in the E-commerce space by delivering top-notch services by carrying out a verification process that would ensure that goods sold on the platform have the right description.
