Ivorien startup, Afrikrea, the e-commerce platform for “all things made of Africa” is launching ANKA– an all-in-one SaaS solution in partnership with DHL and VISA to provide seamless e-commerce, payments, and global shipping online service for thousands of micro retailers and businesses on the continent and around the world, as it continues to power e-commerce for Africa.
Founded in 2016, Afrikrea as a marketplace for selling and buying African-inspired clothing, accessories, arts, and crafts has increased its transactions to over $15 million in 170 countries worldwide, with sellers from 47 out of 54 African countries. The platform currently records over 500,000 visits a month with the majority of customers located in Europe and North America.
Launched to coincide with Afrikrea’s fifth anniversary of operations, ANKA (meaning “Ours” in Bambara and Djoula) allows merchants to:
- Easily sell via a customized online storefront (like Shopify), 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.
- With just 2 clicks, international shipping is offered at the best rates with the best partners. For instance, a 2kg parcel from Nigeria can be shipped to the US or UK for less than $20 – this includes DHL pickup and global tracking.
- Facilitate and centralize payments (global and local) via a secure online wallet and receive payouts according to the merchant’s preference. A dedicated Afrikrea VISA card is also available.
Powered by Afrikrea, ANKA is the first of its kind global e-commerce aggregator of services for African micro retailers and has been developed to reduce the friction of the global sales process for the 7,000+ sellers on the Afrikrea platform, as well as open new routes to market for sellers.
ANKA costs EUR10 [approximately $12] a month and the platform will also connect with MPesa, Orange, and MTN, so customers looking to pay merchants can do so via mobile money, mobile banking, PayPal, and a host of international payment cards. Merchants will also be able to transfer the funds from their wallets in any method of their choice, including their dedicated physical VISA card. From there, they can instantly pay or withdraw funds at an ATM as and when they prefer.
What they are saying
Moulaye Taboure Co-Founder and CEO of Afrikrea says. “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.”
In much the same way that international technology companies like Shopify and Alibaba have been central to inspiring and powering a new wave of global online retailers, and have created wealth for thousands of entrepreneurs via access to amazing eCommerce software, our plan is to achieve much the same, but for the growing and dynamic African market. By handling a safe and seamless process for our vendors – sales, payments, shipping – we expect to grow with them and power commerce for thousands more online marketplaces and sellers who have a passion for Africa”.
