Konga, Nigeria’s online mall, which was acquired by the Zinox Group earlier this year and Yudala, Africa’s pioneer composite e-commerce company, have officially announced a merger of their operations effective May 1, 2018.
The merger will see both companies operate under the Konga brand name.
At an event to announce the merger on Sunday, the management of the two companies stated that the strategic business move would ensure that Konga becomes the biggest organised retail and e-commerce/marketplace outfit in Africa.
It was gathered that the Konga business platform would include two distinct but fully integrated aspects of Konga Online, the e-commerce/marketplace platform; and Konga Retail, the offline arm of the business.
The management of the companies said that both would be supported by Konga Pay, a Central Bank of Nigeria-licensed mobile money platform, and Konga Express, a world-class logistics company with advanced delivery capabilities for internal and external customers.
The Chairman, Konga, Olusiji Ijogun, said, “Combining forces to power the new Konga will enable us to effectively achieve our goals of platform expansion and accelerated growth, as we embark on an ambitious journey to redefine the retail ecosystem with the industry’s most advanced technology.
“Effective from May 1, Yudala will now operate under the name of Konga with dual CEOs in the persons of Nick Imudia, who will be in charge of online, among others; and Prince Nnamdi Ekeh, who will be responsible for offline. This merger will strengthen our position in the Nigerian retail market as we creatively position Konga as the first profitable e-commerce company in Africa.”
“The efficiency of Konga’s cutting-edge online platform, access to thousands of merchants and Yudala’s expansive network of fully stocked offline stores is poised to give our customers the best shopping experience imaginable. We will be working closely with all our combined clients, customers, merchants and employees to make the integration process as seamless as possible and thereafter make public our road map to sustain our leadership on the continent,” Ijogun said.
One of the exciting benefits of this merger is the possibility it offers prospective shoppers to order online, pay and pick-up the product(s) at the nearest Konga offline store. There are also increasing business opportunities for merchants nationwide.
“We are very excited about the operational merger between Yudala and Konga into the new Konga.” “A merger of this magnitude has never been experienced in Africa. We will be leveraging on Konga’s strong technology backbone and online experience as well as Yudala’s offline experience, network of retail stores and operational efficiency. In the near future, we plan to have a Konga store in every local government area in Nigeria. While this is ambitious, we believe that every Nigerian deserves the right to have access to the full range of genuine products offered by Konga,” Prince Ekeh declared.
Plans are also underway to showcase the full power of the merger with expanded access to thousands of products in Konga online and offline stores for all categories of shoppers.
According to Imudia, “We believe this operational merger between Konga and Yudala will bring immense opportunities for consumers in the e-commerce space. We urge all shoppers, consumers, merchants and clients to stay tuned as we unveil the massive ambitious contents we have to offer.”
Widely applauded by industry watchers as a masterstroke, the merger will broaden the range of products and solutions on offer within the Konga/Yudala stable, while giving the customers and merchants more options and access to an expanded variety of guaranteed quality offerings and payment methods.