A person browsing an online store featuring African clothing and accessories on a laptop screen.
Investors in Africa’s e-commerce and retail-tech space should take an ecosystem-growth approach to success rather than expecting quick returns, and as such local investors may be better placed to build out the space, according to retail-tech entrepreneurs interviewed in the latest Disrupt Podcast series. Disrupt Africa has partnered Omnibiz and MarketForce to release a four-part podcast series on the African e-commerce and retail-tech space – with episode three, focusing on funding of the space, now available. Speaking on Disrupt Podcast, the founders of Omnibiz and MarketForce both agreed investors need a deep understanding of Africa’s reliance on its network of small local retailers – known locally as “mom and pop stores”, or “spazas” – for access to essential goods and services to be able to meaningfully engage with the space and make successful investments. Investors focusing too narrowly on a single investment and failing to understand the broader need for ecosystem-growth may be disappointed.
SOURCE: DISRUPT AFRICA