The third wave of ecommerce in Africa:

This first phase of ecommerce startups in Africa caused many to question the viability of ecommerce on the continent, but improving market conditions, the necessity for ecommerce, and the huge potential market size made up of a large population of people under 40 led many to keep trying, in hopes of attaining some level of success.

By the late 2010s, the return of investors’ interest in ecommerce took a different direction as they focused on companies that are digitising retail distribution, such as Wasoko (formerly Sokowatch), Marketforce, Trade Depot, Alerzo, and Omnibiz. The logic behind this was simple: Informal retailers are responsible for 90% of retail transactions in Africa, and 80% of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCGs) to African households. These startups began to bring order to the uncoordinated, fragmented, and unstructured informal retail sector.