Not all businesses are having it rough during this Covid-19 induced economic meltdown. Inspite of the disruptions from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic which has taken a huge toll on the Nigerian economy, negatively affecting virtually all aspects of life, some organisations are bucking the trend. One of the firms experiencing an upward surge in business is a pioneer asset-free logistics marketplace called Dellyman.
Founded less than a year ago, Dellyma is already posting double-digit growth and has seen an uptick in all major indices. Established with aim to solve same-day delivery problems in Nigeria, the company has since grown revenue 20 times between January and April this year, with monthly growth within the same period averaging 145 percent, it said.
The platform has also seen 20 average daily customer acquisition, with about 38 percent of the total active customers placing at least one order since coming onboard.
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Between March and April, Company sources say it recorded a 45 percent increase in the number of active customers to 1,586 – 91 percent growth from January – and a surge in the number of logistics companies to 450, with over 100 verified and active on the platform. More so, the company in March signed its first major partnership with fintech firm Opay to boost its delivery assets by deploying some of the idle motorcycle assets from ORide. This led to an increase in the number of riders on the platform and over 3,000 orders completed by the first week of May 2020 – a 93 percent increase from February this
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The growth seen so far, in spite of the pandemic, is proof that aggregating logistics assets are the right solution to the challenge of same-day delivery in Nigeria. Speaking on this development, the founder and CEO of the company Dare Ojo Bello said that “the numbers we have seen within the past two months is a concrete validation of our business model. We had initially assumed that it is because of the lockdown alone, but we continue to see even a more increased adoption after the phased easing of the lockdown started,” he added.
The company has the ambition of targeting over 5,000 orders in May alone, while looking to even expand its capacity to be able to “keep up with the growing demand,” the chief executive said. Most of the company’s orders have come from online retailers, restaurants, and home kitchens offering custom meals such as soups; pharmacies delivering drugs and other medical supplies, computer and electronics retailers, cake, and confectionery makers, foodstuffs sellers, marketers dispatching multi-level marketing products and documents.
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Logistics is one of the major pain points of electronic commerce in Africa’s largest economy. It constitutes the highest overheads for most online retailers making the e-commerce sector unprofitable and accounting for the number one reason many e-commerce firms have shut down in Nigeria.
Some existing e-commerce firms have had to build independent logistics infrastructure, but that comes at an incredible expense threatening the industry’s growth, which is projected to reach $75 billion in value by 2025.
Dellyman has set out to solve these problems specifically by tackling the shortage of logistics assets and providers, especially for long-range last-mile deliveries. It also seeks to provide solutions to the issues of idle capacity due to the inability of logistics companies to connect with available delivery requests, while providing critical robust technology for the efficiency of delivery services.
“Overall, these problems are complex and difficult but Dellyman’s business model provides the right solution and the numbers prove it,” said Ojo-Bello. “The model leverages cutting edge technology that guarantees quick pick up and same-day delivery; provides increased access to logistics assets through aggregation; delivers an on-demand delivery service while offering a delivery infrastructure to retailers and e-commerce platforms so they don’t have to own logistics assets or technologies.”
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In addition, Dellyman “puts customers in control as they get to choose a delivery company, price, time of pickup, and delivery, as well as the ability to track their packages,” he adds. With its current aggressive growth plan, the company is well-positioned to become a leading logistics marketplace in Africa.
Kelechi Deca
Kelechi Deca has over two decades of media experience, he has traveled to over 77 countries reporting on multilateral development institutions, international business, trade, travels, culture, and diplomacy. He is also a petrol head with in-depth knowledge of automobiles and the auto industry