Afrigather When Jiji launched in 2014, it entered a aggressive e-commerce market in Nigeria, becoming a member of the likes of Konga, Jumia, and OLX, which had a two-year head begin. However Jiji quickly positioned itself as a severe market participant. It began by providing free listings for first-time customers and partnered with telephone producers to make sure its app got here preinstalled on inexpensive smartphones. In 2016, it inked a partnership with Airtel permitting customers to entry the platform with out utilizing cellular information.
Jiji’s ambitions grew past Nigeria. In 2019, it acquired OLX Africa and took over its operations in Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Uganda, and Tanzania. This transfer helped JIji attain 300 million folks throughout 5 nations, firmly establishing the corporate as a serious on-line market in Africa’s e-commerce area with a string of strategic acquisitions.
In 2021, Jiji acquired Cars45, a platform that buys, sells, and trades used automobiles in Nigeria, Kenya, and Ghana. In 2022, the corporate acquired Tonaton, its major competitor in Ghana.
TechCabal spoke to Anton Volianskyi, Jiji’s co-founder and CEO concerning the firm’s journey and the challenges of scaling in numerous markets.
This interview has been edited for size and readability.
TC: What downside did Jiji goal to resolve in Nigeria’s e-commerce market, and the way did this form the platform’s early choices?
We recognized a necessity for a platform the place folks may join straight to purchase and promote all the pieces, from merchandise to providers. On the time, the market confronted urgent points round accessibility, affordability, and belief, with scams creating mistrust in on-line transactions. To deal with this, we constructed Jiji to minimise the dangers by facilitating direct transactions with no intermediaries.
Our early choices have been formed with this mission in thoughts: free listings, rigorous advert moderation, an AI-based safety system, and an built-in chat function enabling customers to work together straight with sellers, all of which enhanced security and person confidence on the platform.
TC: What methods and localised options contributed to Jiji’s development and person adoption in Nigeria?
We launched free listings for first-time sellers, localised content material in languages like Hausa, and search filters tailor-made to Nigerian procuring habits. Partnering with telephone producers, we partnered with telephone producers to offer inexpensive Android telephones preinstalled with the Jiji app, eliminating the necessity for downloads. Optimised for low-data utilization, Jiji ensures accessibility for customers throughout numerous demographics.
TC: What key challenges did Jiji face whereas scaling, and what measures have been taken to beat them?
One of many main points was stopping scams on the platform. To deal with this, we invested closely in AI-driven instruments that detect and stop fraudulent exercise, immediately blocking suspicious customers. One other problem was stiff competitors from international gamers like Ringier and OLX (Naspers) who had big budgets. In contrast to our rivals, we centered on cost-effective efficiency advertising and marketing and meticulously analysed the return on each greenback spent. This strategy enabled us to compete favourably and helped us obtain market management whereas staying financially agile.
The COVID-19 pandemic additionally offered unexpected hurdles. We needed to quickly reorganise our enterprise to adapt to new market calls for. Though the primary quarter was difficult, the surge in on-line buying and selling throughout the pandemic ultimately sped up our development.
Lastly, the naira devaluation had us rethinking and restructuring our monetary technique to align with new financial realities. Our dedication to cost-efficiency helped us keep away from large-scale layoffs, additional making Jiji a resilient and resourceful market chief.
TC: With the acquisitions of Cars45 and Tonaton, how has Jiji built-in these companies and what distinctive worth have they added to the platform?
Cars45 and Tonaton have complemented Jiji’s development and diversified our choices. As an example, Cars45 has helped simplify automotive transactions. For our purchasing clients, they’ll browse a wide array of autos, entry detailed inspection studies masking over 200 checkpoints, and schedule bodily inspections.
For promoting clients, we will now present a platform that gives insights into potential promoting costs backed by over 8 years of market information. Sellers can e-book appointments at any of our 70+ expertise centres for fast, environment friendly inspections and gross sales. Sellers profit from an internet onboarding course of, full with free product coaching.
Tonaton, alternatively, has strengthened our foothold in Ghana, helped to increase our person base and consolidated our market place. With Tonaton and Cars45 below Jiji’s umbrella, we’re getting nearer to turning into a regional chief in classifieds. These acquisitions have enriched our market by offering area of interest experience and increasing our service vary.
TC: How does Jiji guarantee operational effectivity throughout logistics, funds, and buyer help in its numerous markets?
We obtain operational effectivity at Jiji by leveraging know-how and a customer-led strategy. Whereas Jiji doesn’t deal with logistics or cost providers straight, we empower consumers and sellers to attach and handle transactions independently. This manner, we guarantee a versatile and user-driven market expertise for our customers. We even have a buyer help system, which incorporates managers who’re only a name away, an AI chatbot system, and a help group prepared to help each consumers and sellers throughout our markets.
TC: How is Jiji’s platform monetised throughout totally different areas, and have latest acquisitions and job listings diversified its income streams?
Jiji has a few income streams that help our development throughout markets. Primarily, sellers pay for Premium Providers, which permit them to have extra listings and attain extra shoppers, leading to extra leads and gross sales. We additionally faucet into extra digital promoting revenue by producing advert income from Google by way of banner adverts.
Latest acquisitions, resembling Cars45, have diversified Jiji’s income streams even additional. By way of Cars45, we facilitate verified automotive gross sales and optimise our automotive choices whereas including one other income channel.
TC: What programs and processes are in place to keep up high quality management and guarantee a secure expertise for customers?
We prioritise high quality management and person security. We have now moderation groups localised throughout our markets. They overview adverts and guarantee compliance with our insurance policies, and people of our host nations. Moreover, by way of our safety programs, our AI-driven algorithms detect and flag suspicious exercise on the platform, robotically blocking erring customers. We additionally supply security recommendations on our web site and different verified official communication channels. This rigorous strategy has helped construct belief amongst our customers and cut back fraud incidents to under 1%.
TC: Are you able to share insights into Jiji’s development metrics and monetary outlook, together with its profitability?
Beginning in 2014 when our Director of African Operations, Yuliy Shenfeld, visited Nigeria to rent our first workers, our development has been outstanding ever since. We have now expanded to have a workers base of over 1000 members. In 2023, Jiji attracted 65 million distinctive guests, which means that each fourth web person in our markets engaged with our providers. We have now grown to have over 6 million lively listings with a mixed estimated worth exceeding $10 billion. Jiji at present drives annual transaction volumes within the vary of $10-20 billion.
We have now additionally expanded to eight African nations, supported by a group of 1,000+ devoted members. Jiji now serves over 200,000 lively sellers and SMEs, showcasing the large enchantment of our choices. Our platform is very rated on the Play Market with greater than 200,000 critiques throughout our nations, averaging 4.7 stars in Nigeria, and welcomes over 12 million distinctive guests month-to-month.
TC: What are Jiji’s plans for future enlargement inside Nigeria and different African nations?
We’re at present current throughout 8 nations – Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Senegal, and Côte d’Ivoire. We lately launched Premium Providers in Ethiopia. When it comes to regional enlargement, we’re exploring additional development in East and West Africa whereas additionally being dedicated to deepening our presence in Nigeria.
TC: Provided that Jiji is ranked because the forty second most-visited web site in Nigeria, how does it plan to keep up and even enhance its standing amid rising competitors in e-commerce and classifieds?
To keep up our standing, we’re specializing in bettering person expertise on the platform. We’ll preserve exploring partnerships to satisfy the ever-changing wants of our customers and supply localised options, options, and promotional instruments to assist companies develop. We goal to maintain tempo with person expectations.
