Sendy, Kenya’s forerunner logistics platform has recently partnered with the Kenya Association of Manufacturers and tripled its staff in a new growth strategy.
The firm says the new partnership will see Sendy and KAM train manufacturers on effective transport and logistics in a move to reduce operational costs instead of managing fleets.
Just $15 for up to 5 kilometers
Using on-demand technology, Sendy aims to help manufacturers do deliveries at less than a quarter the cost they use today. Delivery using a Sendy pickup and van delivery is just $15 for up to 5 kilometers covered. While 3 tonne, 5 tonne, 10 tonne truck delivery costs $59, $65 and$76 respectively, for up to 20 kilometers compared to owning trucks, paying insurance, hiring drivers and their assistants, and paying for all other fleet management-related costs.
The firm has also tripled employees in the second half of the year as it looks to improve its product and grow its revenues by the end of the year in line with it’s growth strategy.
The recruitment efforts take Sendy from a total of 30 employees as recently as November 2018, to more than triple that size six months later, in anticipation of a steep rise in the number of businesses that will use the platform by the end of the year.
“Sendy is growing at a fast pace. As a technology platform with a rapidly growing pool of customers and drivers, we are prompted to ramp up resources across departments, to ensure we build a product that meets the demands of all businesses in need of efficient logistics. And building a world-class product is not merely about talent acquisition – it’s about getting the right talent to do the job.” Mr. Meshack Alloys, CEO Sendy, said.
The new talent is in the product, engineering, human resource, marketing and sales departments, brought in to build the Sendy product, optimize processes, and help generate revenues.
Forerunner logistics platform
Sendy has been in operation since 2014 and is formalizing the logistics sector by using technology to enable movement of goods from one point to the other. The company recently hired Mr. Victor Mwangi as its Commercial Director, whose role is to lead Sendy’s commercial activities at a time when the company is positioning itself to get more businesses both in Kenya, and other African countries.
“With a technology platform like Sendy, we believe that the added personnel will help us serve our customers better. In line with the government’s Big Four agenda, we are also finding, and offering work to talented youth. Specifically, we are on the lookout for specialists in our areas of needs, and doing everything we can to t help bridge the unemployment gap.” Mr. Alloys added.
Sendy Commercial Director, Victor Mwangi, noted that logistics in Africa contributes to 320% of the final price of a product, compared to just 90% in other countries. Sendy aims to bring this number down by reducing unnecessary costs that companies incur in purchasing and maintaining assets that they use only occasionally.
“With this partnership, we want to help manufacturers optimize and reduce their logistics costs by leveraging technology to do deliveries both within and outside Nairobi. The logistics space as we know it is fragmented. Our platform is revolutionizing how logistics is done, by allowing businesses to access different types of vehicles,” Mr. Mwangi said. “No small businesses should be left behind because the cost of logistics is high,” he added.
Logistics space is fragmented
Sendy’s platform is aggregating unstructured transporters by using data to help companies get goods to their customers affordably. Currently, Sendy has over 5,000 businesses on their platform and looks to double this in the coming year.
KAM CEO Ms. Phyllis Wakaga said that through this training and education, KAM members will now understand better how to leverage technology to ensure they provide accessibility of goods across the country, affordably.
“Part of KAM’s goal to our members is to enhance market access for products, locally and globally, and to grow exports by 33% by 2019. By partnering with Sendy to offer logistics education and knowledge to our members, we believe will add value and help the members reduce their logistics costs drastically.” Said Ms. Wakaga.
