Online shopping may not be completely new phenomenon in Nigeria but rapid activities going on in that digital world in recent times, is definitely a threat to the customary shopping methods in Nigeria.
But Managing Director of Slot Nigeria, Mr. Nnamdi Ezeigbo, said though online shopping is becoming trendy in the country, he said there is no way it would affect the conventional shops, adding that the company has opened over 50 shops in the country and the online shopping would assist the sales through those shops close to the customers
According to him, Slot went on online to serve its customer better.
According to him, customers can buy the company’s phone from any location in the country. Ezeigbo said that even if the customer does not have a credit card to make payment online, he can still pay at his or her door step on delivering of the good.
He said the challenge of online shopping is that whenever a person, he expects delivery in a short time, hence online shoppers are mainly customers who do not have the time. He added that even in the developed world where online shopping has taken root, they have malls where people go often for shopping.
Looking at the recent launching of lofelofe.com, the online shopping is not only on electronics or home appliances as the new platform would provide various products and a place to channel items that people no longer need to those who need them. In his view a fast food restaurant operator, Mr. Tobias Igwe, said that bankers, oil workers and his other high profile customers, made their orders online because he introduced it to them as part of marketing strategy. He added that the online sells has opened his business to those customers, he would not have been able to reach.
Igwe, said no matter how online shopping develops and be embraced by Nigerians, people will continue to visit food restaurants to have launch and relax. Mr. Kunle Adeyemi, a businessman said that in other clams, online shopping yet families from time to time go for shopping in a mall and plazas as a kind of fun and culture, “that cannot be taken away from any society,” he said.
A house wife, Madam Joy Isioma, said it will take a long time for the online shopping to displace the traditional shopping methods because it will take a ;long time before everybody will have access to internet or want to indulge in the luxury of shopping online missing the opportunity of haggling with the seller till he gets a good bargain.
She added that the online shopping would not be any threat to conventional shops or market for a long time in Nigeria because most customers buy things on credit which cannot happen online. Today, some customers have become so used to shopping online that they depend on it as part of their lifestyle.
According to Raphael Afaedor, Chief Executive Officer of supermart.ng, a grocery online store, ”customers buy their entire grocery needs for the week at one address and get it delivered straight to their doorstep. Lots of these customers have cut down their visits to the local supermarket significantly thereby saving them some quality time.
According to him, there is an understanding that customers spend too much time at grocery shop; easily over three hours per week, between going to multiple stores, then a visit to the local market just to get the products they want to buy.
Because Supermart.ng aggregates the entire available inventory both from the local market and supermarkets at one address customers are able to fulfill their entire basket which also ensures suppliers make money. For Evangeline Wiles, the Managing Director of Kaymu.com, in the past three years, online shopping has revolutionized consumers buying habits.
More and more Nigerians are embracing e-commerce and the lease of life it provides. Online shopping places the consumer’s purchasing power at the click of a button and he is not limited by time and place as with retail shopping. It’s easy, fast and convenient, he said.. He said this is partly because of the introduction of cheap Smartphone and cheaper data plans.
Also most ecommerce businesses have been able to build up the trust factor allowing people start their search of a product or service online without fear of been scammed. Using Carmudi as a case study, the Public relation officer of the firm said the firm has seen a very significant increase in its page visits since its existence and can only attribute this to the fact that online shopping has become a convenience and also because people have come to view carmudi as a trusted platform.
“We also noted that the millennial (between 18-34 years old) are more active in the ecommerce space. 35 per cent of searches on the carmudi website come from this age bracket.
This group is the first to be born straight into the digital generation. The internet is not a thing to Millennia; it is just the norm so it is only normal for that online shopping will continue to increase.”
Sunday Telegraph learnt that Konga, one the household names in online shopping in Nigeria, started by selling beauty, personal and baby care products to online shoppers in Lagos. The company grew quickly with the rapid expansion of product categories and geographic reach.
Today it delivers products to every state in Nigeria and now has a massive array of over 200,000 products listed for sale on its site. Public Relation Officer, Tomiwa Akande said, “We have a strong social media followership of close to two million people”.
Since the opening of the Konga Marketplace to small and medium size businesses through its SellerHQ Marketplace in 2014, over 20,000 traders have registered on the site. Konga.com, whose revenue grew 450 per cent from 2013 to 2014.”
Likely growth, predicted three years ago is becoming a reality as online shopping by urban consumers is more than double; this is according to demographics from these platforms. Explaining reason as; digital influence is rapidly expanding to small urban towns and rural areas, thereby, increasing the number of mobile users in country.
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