The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Jumia

  • Coscharis motors partners Jumia for discounts

    Coscharis Motors PLC, a foremost automobile dealer in Nigeria and sole representative of auto brands like Ford, BMW, Jaguar, Land Rover and Morris Garages (MG), in Nigeria, has partnered with Jumia, an online shop to market some of her vehicle brands at heavily discounted rates. Shoppers on Jumia will also stand a chance to win a brand new Ford Figo during the Black Friday event.

    Coscharis Group General Manager Marketing and Corporate Communications, Mr. Abiona Babarinde, said it is another way Coscharis Motors Plc is giving back to her customers as they warm up for the Yuletide season.

    He said: “We will always seek new ways to delight our customers and give them value for their money, no matter the platform on which they wish to patronise us, online or offline. During the Jumia Black Friday Promo period, we will offer a number of our vehicle brands at heavily discounted rates for willing customers to take advantage of. Also the entry level Ford Figo will be on offer to be won via a raffle draw on the Jumia platform, for those who will patronise the platform during the Black Friday Promo period.”

    Some of the variants which Coscharis Motors is expected to offer at heavily discounted rates are: Morris Garages – MG 5 COMFORT, MG 6 COMFORT, MG 750 EXECUTIVE, Ford – Ford Expedition King Ranch, BMW – BMW 640, BMW 218i Active Tourer, BMW X-6, MINI – Mini Cooper Countryman, Jaguar – Jaguar XE, Jaguar XJ, Land Rover – Range Rover Evoque Coupe and Range Rover Sport HSE.

     

  • Jumia: our prices ‘re reasonable, competitive

    Jumia: our prices ‘re reasonable, competitive

    E-commerce pioneer Jumia Nigeria said the fluctuating foreign exchange rate that affects the prices of goods and services has made it imperative for people to look for the most convenient channels and affordable means to procure goods and services.

    In a statement, it said its prices are reasonable when compared with those of international e-retailers such as Amazon and Aliexpress.

    “We offer the best prices. For instance, the iPhone 8 64GB on amazon.com shows a price of $825 which when converted to local currency is about N296,175. On Jumia, it sells for N281,999. Even a quick price comparison of popular outdoor markets and physical stores shows that Jumia is keeping good on its word of giving shoppers the best prices. We remain competitive, and in several cases cheaper than several well-known retail shops, outlets and open air markets such as the Saka Tinubu phone village in Victoria Island, Lagos.

    “For instance, the Samsung 32-inch sharp TV retails for N80,000 on Jumia, while the same is sold on competing retail site for N90,000. The PS4 500GB bundle is being sold for N119,000 on Konga and N113,890 on Jumia.

    “The Camon CX Air 5.5 inch currently retails for N40,700 on Jumia while the very best price at other offline stores across the country is N40,800. Also, the iPhone 7 plus 32GB is also available on Jumia at N260,925 but at one popular offline physical stores, the best price is N325,000. At that same offline store, the Samsung S8 (4g+64g) retails for N252,000 while Jumia maintains a price of N219,999.”

    Jumia Nigeria’s Chief Commercial Officer Shobhit Pandey says that Jumia’s best price strategy is coupled with the widest range of genuine products to help shoppers stretch their naira and get more value out of their budget and spending.

    “There are more than 1.4 million products on Jumia.com.ng, ranging from furniture to baby products to electronics. Our commitment is to consistently bring shoppers the widest range of genuine products at the best prices,” Pandey said.

    Head of Engagement Marketing Ojuola Asuquo said customers are protected on Jumia, adding that this is not the case with most physical stores in the country.

     

     

     

    He said: “Jumia customers can pay cash on delivery, enjoy a seven-day return policy, have access to device insurance, and also enjoy free shipping offers and discount vouchers.

    “For those who like to shop abroad, Jumia features international stores where you can shop and pay in naira and enjoy local shipping rates,” Asuquo said.

  • Jumia, AirFrance KLM partner

    AirFrance KLM has said its desire to continue to pursue new ways of adding value to its customers in the country led it to partner with the biggest online retailer in the country, Jumia.

    He said the partnership is unique as it is designed to reward Nigerian-based flyers registered with the airline’s Flying Blue loyalty programme.

    Its Commercial Director, Nigeria & Ghana, Arthur Dieffenthaler, who spoke during the unveiling of the partnership in Lagos, said: ‘’At different occasions, when customers provide us with feedback on how to make the customer loyalty programme Flying Blue more attractive, the question often asked is if it would be possible to use Flying Blue miles on more products, especially products customers need in their day-to-day life. We like to listen to our customers and try as much as possible to improve on the services we offer, we decided to look for a partner to turn this dream into a reality. Today we are happy to announce that we are joining forces with the biggest online retailer in Nigeria – Jumia,” he said.

    Also speaking, the CEO of Jumia Nigeria, Juliet Anammah, said Jumia is proud to unveil a driving partnership with AirFrance KLM airlines to reiterate its commitment to customers.

    “This collaboration will create unparalleled opportunities for the passengers and also allow customers to enjoy the convenience and wide selection available through shopping online with Jumia,” she said.

    According to the firms, the Flying Blue initiative which is tailored to give additional benefits to customers will also expose them to over 1,000,000 product assortment on Africa’s largest online store, Jumia.

    “Usually when AirFrance KLM Flying Blue members earn miles, accumulated miles can be used to pay for tickets, upgrades, hotel stays, and excess baggage allowance. However, with this new partnerships, miles can now be used to purchase items on Jumia Nigeria website.

    This seamless process requires AirFrance KLM Flying Blue members to visit www.flyingblue.com then – spend miles – blue store – leisure – shopping voucher to retrieve their vouchers,” the firms explained.

    The vouchers are of three values, each indicating the cash value and miles value. Members can buy the voucher of their choice and have the miles deducted from their Flying Blue account. An email will be sent to them with an online shopping code for jumia.com.ng.

     

     

     

  • Jumia, Facebook unveil Jumia Bot

    Technology firm, Jumia has introduced a new solution, Jumia Bot, which it said will redefine shoppers experience in the country.

    It said with the solution, shoppers can order food, find fashion or electronic items and book hotels and flights by simply having an online conversation with the Bot.

    On the significance of this new service, CEO Jumia Nigeria, Juliet Anammah, said: “Jumia Bot has a very simple yet important objective: to help our customers get to personalised deals on jumia.com.ng. We are pleased to unveil this new dimension of e-shopping for the Nigerian customer, and excited about helping to pioneer the next wave of local content and tech tools within our ecosystem.”

    This innovation, powered and hosted by Facebook Messenger, officially launched today in Nigeria and will offer Nigeria’s 18 Million Facebook users the ability to get their own personal Jumia shopping assistant directly on Facebook Messenger. The Jumia Bot works by asking customers what they’re looking for, and then using their answers to uncover the best offers. For example, to get access to the best hotel and airfare deals on Facebook Messenger, a user can simply provide his or her preferred date and destination to the Bot in order to see the top recommendations.

    Once a user’s criterion is selected, Jumia Bot will remember and use the research for his or her next order. The bot, developed by Jumia with support from Facebook,  uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) and natural learning process to hone in and learn users’ preferences over time in order to make recommendations that are personalised, timeline and useful to the shopper. The shopper’s post-order experience is also integrated into Jumia Bot. As a result, shoppers can track their orders and contact the Customer Service team for follow-up questions.

  • Jumia offers N1m scholarship for essays

    ONLINE shopping company, Jumia, is going beyond shopping to influence the education sector through an essay competition that promises winners a total of N1 million worth of scholarship.

    The competition targets three categories of pupils in primary, junior secondary and senior secondary levels.

    Senior secondary pupils in SS1-SS3 will write on “What is the role of e-commerce as a means of diversification for the Nigerian economy?” for a chance to win N500,000 scholarship;  JSS1-JSS3 pupils will write for or against “Parental control on the internet should be enforced till age 18,” for N300,000 scholarship; while Primary four and six pupils will write for or against the topic: “Online shopping is better than Offline Shopping” for a N200,000 scholarship.

    The 250-word essays are to be sent with full names, class, school names and address, along with their parents/guardians phone number to community@jumia.com.ng by August 31, 2017

    Along with the competition, the Back to School sales event will feature items needed for school such as stationeries, backpacks, shoes, sneakers, insulated lunch boxes, water bottles, provisions, toiletries, clothing for boys and girls, socks and underwear tees, laptops and computer accessories, alarm clocks among others.

    Ojuola Asuquo, the Head of Engagement Marketing at Jumia Nigeria said the competition provides opportunity to contribute to education.

    “We are pleased to support and make a contribution to Nigerian students and their families towards the upcoming school year,” she said.

    She also urged parents to take advantage of the sales campaign and encourage their school-aged children to participate in the competition.

  • Entrepreneurs: Create processes to protect your startup- Jumia Travel MD

    Entrepreneurs: Create processes to protect your startup- Jumia Travel MD

    The managing director of Jumia Travel  Nigeria, Omolara Adagunodo has said creating processes that will protect a business and its owners is one of the crucial ingredients necessary for the survival of a start-up. Adagunodo made this remark during a fireside chat on the opportunities and challenges of running an e-commerce business in Nigeria at the just concluded CEO Apprentice Africa programme organised by the digital arm
    of Business Day tabloid.

    The Business Day CEO Apprentice boot camp focuses on equipping teenagers; ages 15 and up with the skills required to set up a business. The program features the use of the latest technology in training,including the use of a workbook, which becomes a functional business plan, teaches young entrepreneurs how to come up with a business idea, how to structure their company, how to price their products, product testing and market validation, customer segmentation, competitor analysis and go to market strategies.

    At the event which held at Microsoft office in Lagos, Adagunodo emphasized on the importance of creating processes that will ensure the survival of the business and cater to the untold challenges that will arise in the lifespan of the business. “Often times,” she said, “a lot of entrepreneurs overlook the relevance of putting processes that will guide the business to its future. Some often realise this when it becomes too late and perhaps damaging to the business.”

    Adagunodo also listed some of the challenges facing small businesses (SMEs) in Nigeria to include, cash flow management, incomplete documentation, lack of access to funds, limited human capital, poor data/information management and government regulations.

    In a similar vein, the co-founder of Jobberman, Lekan Olude who interacted with Omolara on the challenges of e-commerce in Nigeria, said the survival of a start-up, to a large extent, is dependent on its workforce. Hence, he encouraged aspiring business owners to always look out for people who believe in the company’s vision and can give constructive criticism.

    Olude also stressed the importance of partnerships with bigger brands. He mentioned that one of the partnerships that turned around the fortune of his company was with the telecom company, MTN. He encouraged the young teenagers at the event to always trust their instincts and their
    staff.

  • TBC: We are not in partnership with Jumia – Sembic

    Sembic International Limited has dismissed the report that it has signed a partnership agreement with Konga and Jumia to boost The Billion Coin (TBC) acceptance in the country.

    Sembic, in a statement, described the report as unfounded, saying it only signed up with both firms as independent sales agents.

    “Any arrangement for the purchase of cryptocurrency is strictly between us and our clients. We hope the false article has not caused any sort of embarrassment to Jumia and Konga,” it said.

    It said the acceptance of TBC, one of the global crypto currencies also known as digital currencies, has been boosted in Nigeria with the launch of an initiative –  MoPAS MarketPlace

    The MoPAS MarketPlace is a product of Sembic International Limited.

    This is the first time an indigenous company has created a solution for the acceptance of such currency in Nigeria.

    “TBC is one of the Crypto currencies making waves in the world. Many Nigerians have invested in TBC and they see their investment increase in value on a daily basis,” the company added.

     

  • Firm says no partnership with Jumia, Konga

    Sembic International Limited has said it is not in partnership with Konga and Jumia to boost The Billion Coin (TBC) or digital currency acceptance in the country.

    In a statement, Sembic International Limited, said contrary to reports that the company was in a partnership with Jumia or Konga for the acceptance of Crypto currency in the country, it only signed up with both firms as independent sales agents.

    “Any arrangement for the purchase of cryptocurrency is strictly between us and our clients. We hope the false article has not caused any sort of embarrassment to Jumia and Konga,” it said in an email statement.

    It said the acceptance of TBC, one of the global crypto currencies also known as digital currencies, has been boosted in Nigeria with the launch of an initiative, called MoPAS MarketPlace

    The MoPAS MarketPlace is an initiative and product of Sembic International Limited. This is the first time in Nigeria that an indigenous company has been able to create a solution for the acceptance of currencies of the not too long future, thereby positioning Nigeria for the financial revolution, redefinition and disruption that is about to happen through the Blockchain Technology.

  • Jumia: smartphones promoting e-commerce

    Jumia: smartphones promoting e-commerce

    The CEO, Jumia Nigeria, Juliet Anammah, has underscored the place of smartphone use in the expansion of the electronic or e-commerce ecosystem in the country.

    In a paper on the African Mobile Trends she presented in Lagos, she said about 71 per cent of website visitors on Jumia used their mobile phones. This is compared to 53 per cent of Jumia African customers.

    She said one of the main vehicles of this mobile trajectory was the adoption of the smartphone device by consumers. As predicted in our 2016 report, smartphone adoption has continued to rise in Nigeria.

    According to her, the mobile phone category continues to be the most popular among Nigerian shoppers on Jumia, in terms of the number of items sold, and revenue generated. The sales of smartphones jumped by 394 per cent between 2014 and last year, mostly driven by an increasing range of smartphones price points.

     

    Africa mobile subscriptions, internet penetration

    She said there are 960 million mobile subscriptions across Africa – an 80 per cent penetration rate among the continent’s population. Internet penetration is at 18 per cent with 216 million internet users.

    While Nigeria’s internet penetration is much higher at 53 per cent, it mobile subscription is similar to Africa’s at 81 per cent penetration (150 million mobile subscription, she said.

    Like last year, it was presumed that the unique subscription rate is lower as each subscriber owns an average of two sim cards, she added.

    E-commerce, smartphone diversification

    Anammah said the average price for a smartphone on Jumia is $117, down from $216 in 2014. Correlating with this is a drop in the share of sales of basic feature phones from six per cent in 2015 to four per cent last year, even as the share of smartphones on the website increased, she said.

    She said last year Chinese mobile brands held dominance and played a major role in introducing smartphones with lower price points. Infinix, Innjoo, Tecno, Samsung and Yezz are the top five smartphone brands in terms of sales on Jumia. Infinix continues to be Africa’s top smartphone brand across Jumia’s 15 markets. One of their entry level smartphones, the Infinix Hot4Lite was one of the best-selling phones across several African markets including Nigeria.

     

    High data costs, lower performance smartphones

    Anammah said: ‘’The increased access and affordability of low specification smartphones has also revealed a need for the mobile ecosystem to respond with data-efficient browsers and mobile apps that are optimised for performance and an easy user experience.

    ‘’Looking at the mobile internet browsers customers use to access Jumia, 50 per cent of customers in Africa come onto Jumia’s mobile site with Google Chrome. In Nigeria that number is just 28 per cent. Instead, the Opera mini-browser is much more popular, with 41 per cent of the mobile traffic to Jumia Nigeria coming from Opera mini.’’

    One reason for this, Anammah said, could be that countries with higher levels of income have been found to have more users accessing the internet with heavier browsers like chrome – which typically have higher system requirements.

    ‘’Opera mini is a lighter browser in terms of data usage and is popular among new mobile internet users who have lower incomes and can’t afford costly internet data packs. A recent report from Opera determined the savings on mobile data costs for Opera mini users in Nigeria has amounted to about $198 million (N39.5 billion) over a 10-month period, due to its data compression technology. This is a clear example of the ripple effect that customer enjoy when a slight change is introduced by one of the digital ecosystem players.

    ‘’In our end, an immediate key priority is to enhance the desktop user experience (which accounts for almost 30 per cent of Jumia’s traffic and almost 40 per cent of orders placed) by delivering a progressive web application that bridges the gap between conventional web pages and native mobile applications, to give customers a faster web and desktop experience that includes functionalities like push notifications and the ability to browse while offline.‘’

     

    M-commerce: beyond browsing on mobile

    Anammah said trend since 2013 was for people to use their mobile phones to browse and look up products and then purchase them on their desktop.

    ‘’Now customers are checking out and paying for orders from the mobile app or the mobile friendly version of the website. This is a trend we foresee growing in the future based on the current figures.

    ‘Mobile customers (both those who use the Jumia app and those who browse from mobile browsers) account for 63 per cent of all orders on Jumia Nigeria. Across the 15 markets where the study was carried out, that figure is at 47 per cent. With a whopping 2,236,000 Jumia app downloads from 2015 to 2016 (a 128 per cent increase), Jumia app users form a significant portion of the mobile traffic on Jumia Nigeria.

  • Things to know before you buy a smartphone

    Things to know before you buy a smartphone

    It’s important to keep certain things in mind before buying a new smartphone

    This is so you can make the best decision and maximise your user experience. Smartphones have, over time, become a sort of indispensable companion, especially because of their use in helping to stay on top of important email and social updates.

    With this, it’s safe to say that choosing the right smartphone for yourself is indeed a big deal.

    Jumia Travel shares information on 6 things you should know and consider before you buy a new smartphone.

     

    THE OPERATING SYSTEM (OS)

    When your budget for a new smartphone is able to get you either an iPhone with the Apple iOS, or a smartphone with the Android Operating System, the burden is then about which of the two to choose. Some people say the Apple iOS is better than the Android OS, but the truth is, it depends.

    The Apple iOS on all iPhones is an easy to use OS (Operating System) and you can be sure of getting the hottest and best apps first, along with the timeliest software updates, tight security and very rare malware problems.

    However, with the Android OS you have more hardware choice and more control over your user experience. The Android OS is easier to customise as you can change almost anything you want and file transfer is also easier than that of the Apple iOS. In the end, it depends on which OS best suits your needs and taste.

    Not forgetting the Windows OS, Windows is also a good choice if you are looking for an OS with good performance because it’s tailored to offer better performance than the Apple iOS and Android OS.

    THE SCREEN SIZE

    Smartphones with a below 5-inch screen should be sourced if one-hand-use is important to you and you are looking for a portable smartphone you can perform quick tasks with. However, if you like to watch videos, play video games, browse online (especially for reading text on a website), basically if you use your phone mainly for media rather than quick tasks, a smartphone with a large screen size (5-inch screens and above) is better for you.

    THE CAMERA

    This is unarguably the most important smartphone feature for most smartphone buyers. When buying a smartphone, consider the camera specs like megapixels (the larger the better), aperture (the lower the better) and, if it’s within your budget, try to get one with Optical Image Stabilization (OIS). If you are unable to get one with OIS, it’s fine, simply consider mainly the megapixels and aperture of the camera.

    THE RAM AND PROCESSOR

    For CPU results, speedier operations and better multi-tasking on your smartphone, you should consider both the RAM and processor of the smartphone. For example, a good RAM and processor will reduce, if not completely eliminate, the incidence of your smartphone ‘hanging’ while in use.  However these days RAM is becoming a more reliable indicator of a phone’s performance than the processor because sometimes a dual-core processor can be far more powerful than an eight-core processor.

    Smartphones with 2GB RAM and above are recommended. Smartphones with very limited RAM are the cause of rudimentary performance problems. 1GB and 1.5GB RAM can be quite tight and lead to performance problems on your smartphone. However, if 1GB and 1.5GB RAM smartphones are the ones within your budget, you can make the best of this by downloading very few apps and refraining from opening multiple apps at the same time. You should close every app you open the moment you are done using them.

    smartphone battery lifeMulti-core processors like the dual-core, quad-core, hexacore and octa-core processors are recommended when sourcing for a good smartphone. But be careful, powerful processors tend to drain the battery of your smartphone. If you will only perform simple tasks with your phone such as communicating through text messages, making calls, checking emails or browsing the internet, a smartphone with a low but reasonable processing power, like the dual-core or quad-core processor, is good for you.

    BATTERY LIFE

    When buying a new smartphone you have to make sure the smartphone has good battery life. Usually, smartphones with a 3000mAh battery are recommended if durability is important to you. You can settle for one above 2000mAh, but avoid going for one lower than 2000mAh.

    STORAGE OPTIONS

    Most smartphones come with 4GB to 64GB internal storage. 16GB internal storage is usually recommended when buying a smartphone because after system partitions are considered, the user accessible storage ends up being as low as 8GB. However, if a 16GB smartphone is outside your budget, you can settle for an 8GB smartphone which you can couple with an external storage device like the microSD memory card.