Konga Building World-Class eCommerce Platform for Nigeria-Kamara

Alex Kamara, chief operating officer, Konga.com, has reiterated the commitment of the e-commerce engine towards building a world-class platform for Nigeria and Africa in general.

Kamara made the remark during the unveiling of the Nigeria’s largest online mall in Lagos, adding that Konga is fantastic Nigerian story.

“But it is actually bigger than that.  It is an African story and we are really committed to this vision of a world-class eCommerce platform for Nigeria and more broadly, for Africa,” he said.

The Konga.com’s mall measuring 120,000 sqr feet is primed to be the biggest of any single online retailer in Africa.

Tagged “Konga Fulfilment Centre (FC), the COO said that facility meets its immediate needs and also provides ample scope for expansion as the company grows.

“As you can see we are currently using only half the floor space.  This setup allows us to optimize efficient operation for our current size but offers the scope and flexibility for very rapid expansion of the operations as needed.  Note the height of the ceilings.  We can actually utilize 4 times the space we currently occupy by introducing a second level above the first”.

“This FC therefore provides a durable platform for the physical operations of the business. Aligned with our strong technology base and rapidly growing logistics /Fulfilment operation, we are reinforcing the solid foundations of our eCommerce company. This is all about our customers; the FC is another critical step towards world-class selection and service for our customers.

“Specifically, this new KONGAfulfillment centre allows (i) KONGA offer a broader and deeper selection of wares; (ii) our retail partners to offer a wider selection through our Marketplace and Fulfilment by Konga channels; (iii) our customers to benefit from the increased selection, improved service delivery and competitive prices that have always been part of the Konga appeal.

“As we move forward we will continue to upgrade this facility to allow us to constantly improve our service delivery.  We can think of this as a future-proof site.

All of which allows us to provide the consumers with more choice, better service, competitive prices and customer satisfaction.

Kamara added that Konga is building a business with an eye on the best in class / best of breed for the customers.

“We believe that it is possible to do this in Africa, better yet, in Nigeria.  We believe the consumers need and deserve the options and the utility that Konga provides and we strongly believe that despite the myriad challenges, it is possible to create such a business in Nigeria and have it thrive”.

Nevertheless, he identified that there are fundamental challenges faced by any technology starting up in Africa like infrastructure, human capital, consumer awareness primarily; “were this business in any other African country, the challenges would be pretty much the same”.

“But we are not dissuaded by these challenges.  They form the foundation of Konga; they are the earth from which this particular tree is growing.

He maintained that the company is more interested on productive cutting-edges as the solutions to devise in the face of these challenges. 

“These solutions are derived from a deep understanding and appreciation of the reality on the ground”.

He said that they are not misguided about the extent of the challenge as Konga has been winning these battles and achieving significant milestones despite them.