Cars45, the automotive site of the $700m worth Frontier Car Group, which recently raised $400m from OLX Group, has officially launched in Ghana and Kenya two months after it began ground operations in the markets as it moves to be the go-to platform for all car transactions in the $45 billion African used car market.
Cars45 CEO and co-founder Etop Ikpe, said, “The process of buying and selling cars today can be complicated, time-consuming and needlessly expensive. We want to put an end to that by providing an easy and convenient way for consumers across Africa to make what is often the most significant financial transaction of their lives.”
Cars45 will allow consumers in Ghana and Kenya to sell their cars directly through its platform and get paid in 45 minutes. Sellers have access to standardised pricing and a transparent marketplace, with 100 percent visibility into price offers, and buyers get access to the largest selection of verified cars.
Cars45 is also promising vehicle financing, background checks, vehicle history, insurance, after-sales support, servicing and other ancillary services that consumers will need in their automotive lifecycle.
With retail locations already opened in Nairobi and Accra, Cars45 plans to increase its footprint in Ghana and Kenya even further by opening more centres in Mombasa, Tema, Kumasi and other cities. Cars45 also aims to expand into additional African markets in 2020.
Cars45 is also going big on its consumer-to-consumer marketplace that directly matches sellers and buyers across all markets it operates in. These will directly compete with marketplaces such as Cheki which has not seen any substantial growth for a number of years. Cars45 will bring in the energy that’s needed in the African automotive market where trust is not traditionally high.
All cars listed in the Cars45 marketplace have been through a thorough vetting process (200 point inspection, due diligence and background check) and will carry the trusted Cars45 inspection report. Cars45 will also conduct multi-level screening to ensure that only serious buyers are brought forward. Buyers will have full confidence in the purchase they are making and sellers will be protected by an escrow model.
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Ghana and Kenya are the next logical steps for any company that aims to take on the pan-African automotive market and Cars45 confirm that after successfully establishing itself in Nigeria, expanding into Ghana and Kenya made perfect sense.
