Today, e-commerce has evolved to be a giant marketplace for most consumers. It has taken its toll on most of the Africans who lack time to physically present themselves to the market to make purchases. E-commerce is also a great opportunity for consumers to interact with the best brands in the world in their quest to buying excellent products. DHL Express is a typical example of an e-commerce platform that facilitates the buying and selling of goods online through DHL Africa eShop. 11 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa have embraced the DHL Africa eShop Innovative Mobile App. DHL Express Africa CEO Hennie Heymans said that he likes the high growth rate that DHL Africa has experienced since its inception in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Mauritius, Ghana, Senegal, Rwanda, Malawi, Botswana, Sierra Leone, and Uganda.
“The uptake and usage of this platform over the past seven weeks has been incredible, with exponential growth in subscribers and physical orders. Based on this rapid growth and the positive feedback that we have received from the market, DHL Express has decided to proceed to the next phase of the rollout as quickly as possible. The platform is now live for consumers in Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Gabon, the Gambia, Madagascar, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Zambia,” he said.
DHL Africa eShop lets African customers shop directly from over 200 UK and US-based online retailers. The products that the customers order are delivered at their door by the DHL Express agents. The system is in collaboration with Link Commer.
CEO Hennie Heymans is of the idea that the demand for world-class services in Africa is growing rapidly on a daily basis. Therefore, there’s a need to give the African consumers a platform that allows them to meet the sellers from all over the world regardless of where they are. This gives them an opportunity to choose the best products the market has to offer.
“As one report by the McKinsey Global Institution shows, Africa has a fast-growing middle-class consumer market which is embracing the internet at an astonishing rate. By 2025, the projected internet market penetration is expected to reach around 50% for the continent, with around 360 million SmartPhones expected to be in circulation. DHL Africa eShop providing the perfect solution for African consumers to access global brands,” he said.
The platform is a live interaction of consumers with international retailers on an easy-to-use platform, with great reliability and convenience. They can get their desired product from their brand of choice in a speedy manner thus creating customer satisfaction. Similarly, it gives the global brands the chance to connect with a Captive African market- markets that were not embraced due to the perception of high complexity and uncertainty.
“As the global leader in express logistics, DHL is well positioned to connect African consumers with these exciting global brands. We are committed to driving e-commerce growth on the continent on all fronts. We work with thousands of e-commerce brands in Africa and help them to reach global customers, and now work with our DHL Africa eShop. We also connect African consumers to global brands.”
