Rocket Internet’s eBay Clone Kaymu Launches in Kenya | Goes Android in Nigeria

Amidst the launch of Radio Africa Group’s Ghafla copycat Mpasho, Rocket Internet-backed online marketplace Kaymu, an eBay clone has launched in Kenya quietly aiming to  the country’s largest community for buying and selling.

Kaymu.co.ke, will allow users to sell their unused things to others just like Naspers’ OLX among others in the country. As more Kenyans get online to sell and buy-thanks to OLX and Jumia, a number of gamblers are launching similar sites with expectation of reaping it big after a few years however, we think they’ll close shop before their second year just like most startups do according to widely accepted studies. Dukalako, the latest entrant in the eBay model will now have to work harder than just going to cyber cafes and buses as their marketing campaign.

Whether you love or hate Rocket Internet, they move first, break things are unapologetic and are raising money all the time and have a clear focus of what they want in a market. Kaymu Kenya has to thank OLX for all the education it has done and all the campaigns it has carried out. Just one more player in this space then it will become democratic.

Rocket Internet’s car site Carmudi.co.ke is also underway and there are some car dealers already on board though it seems Kenyans are afraid of change and new market entrants. Kaymu is different from OLX in that it works with verified sellers and small businesses and accepts payments before or on delivery while OLX only connects buyers to sellers.

Kaymu Kenya will be a marketplace where buyers and sellers can buy the cheapest items, used or new, such as smartphones, computers, fashion and clothing, home appliances, cars and real estate for the best prices. Merchants can also advertise and sell their products directly to the customers near them.  The transactions are safe and secure and you get to choose where and when the delivery will take place, or you can choose the shipping option. The site aims to help users to find a merchant close to them to purchase from as well as all the popular vendors from all over Kenya.

Back home in Lagos where Kaymu first launched in Africa in December 2012, the site has launched an Android app to ramp up it’s mobile marketing efforts and make online shopping in Nigeria even easier and more convenient.

The app will enable sellers to list products and buyers to select from a wide variety of products at a glance. and will also offer a wider product assortment, fast and intuitive navigation, and easier buyer and seller account management.

Evangeline Wiles, Managing Director of Kaymu Nigeria said in a statement, “Mobile marketing is very quickly, revolutionizing the buying and selling process in Nigeria. With people conducting transactions via messaging apps like Blackberry Messenger and WhatsApp. The launch of the Kaymu.com.ng mobile application on different platforms will provide an even more structured platform for sales to be conducted on the go”.

The NCC records the total number of mobile internet subscribers in Nigeria at 65,813,890 (based on active internet subscriptions in April 2014). According to a 2013 report by McKinsey Global Institute, 58% of Nigerians living in cities have access to an internet-capable mobile phone, and urban Nigerians are more than twice as likely as the average African internet user to conduct transactions online. This boost has led to an m-commerce explosion in Africa, as the number of users who access the internet via their phones is growing rapidly and leapfrogging traditional desktop use in Africa.

In addition to the growing market penetration of smartphone devices in Africa, Nigeria is said to be among the 10 fastest growing economies in the world, according to The Economist in 2013, The World Bank predicted that sub-Saharan marketplaces will expand by 5.1% in 2014 and by 5.2 per cent in 2015. The Kaymu.com.ng mobile app is available for download on Android devices from the Google Play Store.