Ivory Coast-based e-commerce startup Afrikrea has launched a new software as a service (SaaS) platform to power omnichannel global selling for African micro retailers.
Founded in 2016, Afrikrea is a marketplace for the selling and buying of African-inspired clothing, accessories, arts and crafts. The platform has 7,000 sellers across 47 African countries, and records over 500,000 visits a month with the majority of customers located in Europe and North America.
The startup, which raised a US$1 million funding round early last year, has now partnered DHL and Visa to launch ANKA, a platform that allows African micro retailers to easily sell their products to the world.
ANKA allows merchants to sell via a customised online storefront, social media platforms, or by links such as on Gumroad and also the Afrikrea marketplace. This is carried out via an omnichannel dashboard with a single inventory, orders and messages management.
International shipping is also offered, while ANKA can also facilitate and centralise payments via a secure online wallet and receive payouts according to the merchant’s preference. A dedicated Afrikrea Visa card is also available.
“We see Afrikrea as the bridge between Africa and the world, empowering thousands of micro retailers and their clients globally. Those entrepreneurs currently lose time and energy managing multiple channels of sales, and also lose money through the multiple intermediaries needed to ship their orders or get access to their funds. ANKA enables them to sell anywhere as well as get paid – seamlessly, from one place,” said Moulaye Taboure, co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Afrikrea.
