In this day and age, we have to accept that online shopping is a developing market and that retailers are clear on their way to make the best use of its availability and convenience for customers all over the world.
In Kenya for instance, the number of growing tech-savvy customers is increasing on a daily. Being a leader in technology in East Africa, it’s no surprise that Kenya was able to take advantage of e-commerce a couple of years ago. This is not only contributed to the fact that internet penetration has significantly increased in the past few years, but also due to the popularity of reliable payment mechanisms, i.e. M-Pesa.
International leading e-commerce platform MallforAfrica, opened its offices to the Kenyan public this Friday following the growing demand by Kenyans to buy from leading retailers in the UK and US.
MallforAfrica, which is the e-commerce platform in Africa that provides access to UK and US stores directly, seeks to fill in the demand found in the new era of online shopping which has opened up Kenya to the rest of the world by meeting convenience, speed and accuracy in delivering the wide range of products available for purchase on their website.
The platform has over 8.5 billion items for sale from over 150 US and UK retail stores including Amazon, Carter’s, Fashion Fair Cosmetics, Topshop UK, Barneys, Footlocker, Sports Direct, M&S, Bloomingdale’s, J’s Crew among others.
Speaking at the launch, Country Manager for Kenya, Naomi Konditi-Kivuvani noted how the growing number of Kenyan consumers has provided them an opportunity to set up shop in the country. She said that with the growing demand for genuine international products, with a preference to accepted payment platforms, the launch of MallforAfrica will make it easier for Kenyans to purchase goods from a store of their choice and have it delivered to their doorstep within 15 days.
As much as there is the boom in consumers using e-commerce to purchase various goods including fashion items, there is still the major concern of inconvenience in delivery and payment options. Many people all over the world either complain of security of their data, purchases or money, delivery time or with the fact that most stores in the UK and US don’t deliver goods to Africa, let alone Kenya. Another barrier majorly faced is when a customer gets the wrong purchase then ends up staying with the package because the retailer/platform used to purchase it doesn’t accept refunds or returns on wrong packages.
However, MallforAfrica is set up in a very ingenious way to tackle all these issues that most consumers in Africa face:
1. In terms of delivery, products take up from 4-15 days for delivery. MallforAfrica usually gives you an option of the goods being delivered to your doorstep – after giving your physical address – or you can pick it up yourself at their pickup locations. Currently, their main experiential center is at the Mirage in Westlands opposite University of Nairobi, Chiromo Campus.
2. They have a return policy which works when you receive the item that you hadn’t ordered. In such cases, they would return the item and have the retailer send the correct purchase or refund the full amount of the item plus all other additional charges. However, this only happens when the item you ordered is not what you received.
3. Once you register, you get a Webcard account. The Webcard has benefits like:
- No monthly fee
- No transactional fee when you use the card
- No minimum balances required
- Access to special deals and promotions through the MallforAfrica app.
4. The sites listed on the website are all vetted to ensure maximum security for shoppers. If a customer wants to purchase products from a site that hasn’t been vetted, they recommend another site that is safer and more secure for you to make your purchase.
You can also save and transfer funds from the Webcard to your friend/loved one who is also a registered user at the MallforAfrica account.
CEO, MallforAfrica, Tope Folayan also commented and said that the platform would revolutionise the shopping experience for Africans. Together with the MallforAfrica Country Manager, Nigeria, Tolu Oladipo, they have assured Kenyans that the platform is not only one of the best e-commerce platforms for some of the best international high-quality products, but is also a very safe, reliable and cost-effective service for the best shopping experience.
So shop without breaking a sweat! Register at the MallforAfrica website here, download the app and start shopping with ease and convenience.
