To Shop or Not to Shop; the Nigerian E-commerce Question

Surprises abound in our beloved country and the latest one, in case you don’t live here, is that e-commerce has EXPLODED in Nigeria. In a nation where our reputation leaves much to be desired and people have reportedly been living on $1 a day for as long as there has been CNN, why is there a sudden rush to open up e-commerce websites in Nigeria? As MTN would attest, there is money to be made in Nigeria. Regardless of the hardships and challenges, they have been making money since their first year in this country. With the help of technology, the internet and cashless payment systems and gateways, anyone can set up an e-commerce website and sell anything- physical goods or services- from any corner of Nigeria and the world. The biggest names have been growing in popularity because they are spending vast amounts to get your attention. Konga.com, DealDey.com and Jumia.com seem to be leading the pack, but new sites are springing up every day. Buynownow.com is holding its own and growing. Now there is also a new service for food delivery called hellofood.com (we use it a lot here in our office and it works pretty well), as well as sites dedicated to particular items, like Sunglasses.com.ng, BeddingsnBeyond.com, and the list goes on and on and on. The question is, are people ready to shop? Are you buying? Tell us your experiences. We want to know what service you use and why. If not, why not? Also if we left out your favourite sites, do let us know.