6 ms·

Jumia is not an African startup

79 points by amolo 7y ago

duncan-donuts 7y ago
Interesting read. I’ve never heard of Jumia before today. The wiki page says their headquarters is in Lagos, but I didn’t see that mentioned here. Does all that mean they have an office/headquarters in Lagos but everything else is outside of Africa?
ralusek 7y ago
"our colonized minds think foreign brands are better." The language of the modern left allows for such forceful and vague assertions. What a simultaneously vacuous and damaging sentence that is. I take it antirez colonized us Americans into using Redis, right? Toyota has colonized our minds into buying their vehicles. No objectivity involved at all, just nationalistic power plays. Think of the removal of agency being afforded to Africans by the author. Surely it's not possible that Africans are simply using products that best suit their needs, but instead must be parasitized, and are being subjected against their best interests to a malicious western ideology.
externalreality 7y ago
It seems "Africa’s largest e-commerce company" is not African at all. It always pains me to see this when I visit small countries. Jobs are one thing, but if small countries find that massive resources are leaving the country in the name of those jobs then what's the point - it can be considered some form of trade at best and in the worst case colonization.
- arcticbull 7y ago
  It's hard to say that this is problematic. Canada's largest chain of coffee shops (Tim Hortons) is owned by a Brazilian company -- is that colonization? Saks Fifth Avenue, on the other hand, is Canadian -- is that? The Mandarin Oriental is owned by Jardine Maethson, headquartered in Hong Kong, but incorporated in Bermuda, with a long history trading opium in the South China Sea area -- is that exploitation today? That's just three random examples. Foreign investment allows companies to grow and succeed. I think there's sensitivity in this area due to past history though I don't think it's fair in this case. Owning a foreign company isn't 'exploitative.'
  - externalreality 7y ago
    > Canada's largest chain of coffee shops (Tim Hortons) is owned by a Brazilian company. You are comparing apples and oranges. In many cases larger countries are able to conduct fair trade agreements. In the case of smaller countries they usually don't have the resources (military/political influence) to enact fair agreements and are "ripped off" by companies offering jobs.
    - iguy 7y ago
      But Brazil is larger than Canada by most measures. It has a larger population, and a higher GDP, and is 85% of the land area (but 0% frozen).
  - robocat 7y ago
    Are the large majority of major companies in Africa African? The issue isn't about a few foreign companies. Is the majority of Canadian market cap foreign?
  - amolo 7y ago
    They do not claim to be a Canadian company for PR and media attention. Thats the difference. Secondly, Jumia really exploits Africans to make a quick buck, they sell purely Chinese grade C goods all this is not benefiting Africans. This is modern day cannibalization. (and they still aren't profitable).
    - Canadauni 7y ago
      Are you saying that Tim Horton's doesn't claim to be Canadian for PR and media attention? Because that is basically the core of their marketing, to be synonymous with Canadian culture.
    - arcticbull 7y ago
      This is modern day eating other people? Yes Tim Hortons absolutely does.
- charlesdm 7y ago
  They have a German holding company. The shareholders could move it to Luxembourg tomorrow if they wanted, or Belgium / Cyprus / Malta / Singapore / Dubai / etc. This doesn't really matter, because holding companies are in their simplest form empty shells that merely hold shares of other operating entities. They group equity participations. You want a holding company to be based in a country with an established and stable legal system, of which the African continent has exactly none. Jumia is for all intents and purposes, an Africa focused group.
brudgers 7y ago
Jumia was set up by Rocket Internet. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-rocket-internet-jumia-ipo-idUSKCN1M01PG https://www.reuters.com/article/us-rocket-internet-jumia-ipo... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_Internet https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_Internet
deogeo 7y ago
The title says 'a digital colonization thread' - so foreign ownership or control of companies is colonization? Does that apply to, for example, US-owned companies in Europe? Or Chinese-owned companies in the US?
- gumby 7y ago
  Many people do feel that way, though I personally find the idea of any significant multinational as being from a specific country silly.
  - deogeo 7y ago
    From the recent front-page story https://www.politico.eu/blogs/the-coming-wars/2019/04/how-europe-learned-to-fear-china/ https://www.politico.eu/blogs/the-coming-wars/2019/04/how-eu...: "Then there was Kuka, the crown jewel of German robotics, which was taken over by Chinese home-appliance maker Midea in 2016. What happened next has become part of a now recognizable pattern: Once a firm is acquired by a Chinese company, its European suppliers are abandoned for Chinese value chains." Silly or not, Chinese firms will favor other Chinese firms. This behavior isn't limited to China.
    - gumby 7y ago
      Kuka is small potatoes. I really should have been clearer that by "significant" I think of most of the Global 200: Exxon, Apple Nestlé, Danone, Google et al: Their revenues are global and their interests are global, as are their hiring, lobbying, usw.
- rising-sky 7y ago
  If you read past the title, I think the author's point is that, this is from a legal and business perspective a patently German company that is presenting itself as African solely because it currently does its business there exclusively. US-owned or registered companies in Europe don't typically masquerade as European because they operate there
  - 7y ago
neximo64 7y ago
Is Naspers an African company or does that not count either because of its roots
- EtienneK 7y ago
  Furthermore, since Tencent’s largest shareholder is African, does that make Tencent and African company? This question is rhetorical.
- amolo 7y ago
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naspers https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naspers Naspers was founded in South Africa so yes its African. Its services and activities benefiti Africans so yes, it its African. Jumia on the other hand, unless you are from around here and have used Jumia, you will understand my point. Read my other comments for reference.
  - neximo64 7y ago
    South African 'Afrikaans' isn't African if you're following the same logic as Jumia
chirau 7y ago
An "African company" does not necessarily mean a company registered in Africa or owned by Africans. When us Africans refer to something as African, it can mean several things. Allow me to call it a FUBU approach. That means "For Us, By Us". It can also mean "For Us or By Us" This means the entity does not necessarily have to be of African origin, it can just be a result of its focus on Africa. Jumia operates exclusively in Africa, and by virtue of that and our Ubuntu mentality, it is for all intents and purposes, one of us. Though not officially. When Africans supported the French soccer team last year at the World Cup as "our African team", do you really think Africans are not aware that France is not in Africa and was not representing Africa either. It's just a social construct that gives us something to cheer about, historically we haven't had much. The same FUBU mentality is also why a lot of Africans considered non-Africans "African heroes". Where I come from, Fidel Castro is an African hero for educating our doctors for free and sending doctors of their own. It's not because he is African. It is simply because of FUBU and Ubuntu.
- Edmond 7y ago
  I am afraid you're making quite a statement there on behalf of all Africans...This African completely disagrees :)
  - rising-sky 7y ago
    Exactly, so do I
  - chirau 7y ago
    And that is totally fine. I am sure my opinion does not represent 100% of Africans.
- rising-sky 7y ago
  As a converse example, Apple operates globally, no one is going to mistake them for not being an American company, let's not make excuses for what can arguably be described as a usurp on African identity. From the standpoint of a corporate entity, they are not incorporated in Africa nor have substantial corporate representation in Africa. Everything else is secondary. As the author points out Coca-Cola has immense presence in Africa, and is definitely a far more recognizable brand than Jumia even with current exclusivity, that does not translate into being an African company
deesep 7y ago
"Let’s also be honest here. Jumia didn’t succeed because it was “African”. Jumia owes part of its success to a marketplace that doesn’t believe in domestic brands. It’s heavy lifting to build a successful local brand, because you’re viewed suspiciously." I live in Ghana, and I don't shop on Jumia[1] because i don't believe in domestic brands. It's a ridiculous claim. This[2] is a local brand that has made 10,000+ successful sales via Jumia. The major challenge of doing E-commerce in Africa is that excluding some affluent parts, many towns and cities don't have functioning address grids. It's a complete mess and one requires the use of landmarks and long descriptions to locate places. Jumia representatives always call to ask for directions to your location. If they get lost, you could have them give the phone to anyone nearby who is familiar with the neighborhood. You can then have the stranger direct them(Jumia delivery reps) to your location. It may be unconventional, but works. I and millions of people who shop on Jumia do so cause it's convenient and provides a needed service. Until a few days ago, I had no idea it's a German company and its founders are french. Calling it an African company when it's not may be deceptive, but please don't say it's successful because Africans don't love local brands. [1] - https://www.jumia.com.gh/ https://www.jumia.com.gh/ [2] - https://www.jumia.com.gh/white-label-woven-kente-fabric-6-yards-multicolour-67916.html https://www.jumia.com.gh/white-label-woven-kente-fabric-6-ya...
- externalreality 7y ago
  You shop on Jumia because it's convenient. It's also convenient for foreign interest to setup an Amazon like business to skim millions off the top of an economy that can scarcely afford it. The point is, Jumia is not good for Ghana, a domestic company would create more jobs and keep hundreds of millions of dollars of wealth from leaving the country. Its not about whether or not you get your 1st world products delivered on time, its about pulling yourself out of the 3rd world and Jumia is not helping you with that. Many people forget that when Japan first started producing cars they were so bad at it some models didn't even operate in the rain. Or that American steel, originally, was supremely subpar to British steel. Its about doing whats best for the country - and having some foreign entity control a good portion of the commerce in the country (especially when it is so easy to build your own) is not a good idea for an emerging economy. Remember, also, that Jumia will have the same control over market that Amazon does which is immense power and why the United States is considering limiting Amazon's power over the market. Basically, if Jumia begins to not only control the market but participate in the market as well it will be bad for these small nations.
ntrly 7y ago
All companies are entirely their shareholder's so unless a national government has a controlling stake in a company no company is any country's company much less a continent's one. You might say Jumia is an African brand, brands are fictions created by companies specifically for the purpose of being associated with something potentially valued by consumers in a given market.
anovikov 7y ago
What's bad about it? This is one big field startups have to disrupt yet: colonization. Africa probably can't work on its own, we just have to really figure out colonization. Yes people largely gave up on it in 1960s because it didn't make money, but they just didn't have that Google moment there, web search also didn't make money in 1990s. Many places in the world would benefit from proper adult oversight. Politicians can't say it because they need votes. But why businessmen should lie to themselves?
MetalGuru 7y ago
Can someone explain to me why Amazon can’t be the Amazon of Africa?
luminati 7y ago
I understand the spirit of the tweet storm - but please let me lulz myself a bit => Tencent is an African majority owned company ;)
dmix 7y ago
> They each hold just over 2% of the company’s shares. Wow, 4% foreign ownership of stock by founders who operate a business entirely in Africa /s. Is this really the substance of this expose? Especially considering founder stock isn't how the vast majority of how value is returned to society in day-to-day business operations. But rather through the value delivery of the businesses to consumers and paying peoples employees. Even the founders living and operating in Africa would mean a massive chunk of their dividends/salary would be going back into the African economy. There are a million ways companies can generate value to a region/continent. The idea that a company is entirely extracting capital/value from other countries, because the (4% minority ownership) founders are foreign-born and the corporation was registered in Europe is not how that works. Just like how saying a couple guys from Boston, with a company registered in Delware, but their entire operations and business-model is based in California ...is not primarily generating value for California but Boston/Delware. At most this could only potentially reduce the narrative about individual success potential of African business owners. But that doesn't make it any less an African business and a model that businesses can work locally. Which is all investors care about. Even in SV 90% of investors won't look at you until you've somewhat proven your business-model OR you have had past success + network. Rarely do they invest blind unless it's a trendy highly-well timed startup they are looking to gamble on in a first-to-market type investment... but even that is rare. The authors claim this is merely dismissible by the founders 'melanin' levels doesn't really hold up to scrutiny. https://twitter.com/tmsruge/status/1117106622357299200 https://twitter.com/tmsruge/status/1117106622357299200
- michaelmrose 7y ago
  They hold 4% how much of the remaining 96% is foreign owned?
wilsonfiifi 7y ago
Actually Jumia was founded by 2 West Africans but it seems it’s history is being rewritten [0][1]. Unless there are two Jumias. This article [2] in particular, written in 2013, is no longer available and doesn't appear to be available in the wayback machine. edit: Seems there's a more in depth article from 2014 [3] [0] https://vc4a.com/blog/2013/09/03/online-retail-becomes-a-reality-in-africas-biggest-market-behind-the-scenes-with-nigerian-internet-startup-jumia/ [1] https://techcabal.com/2014/01/30/jumia-confirms-exit-tunde-kehinde-raphael-afaedor-announces-new-ceos/ [2] https://vc4a.com/blog/2013/08/09/jumia-nigeria-how-a-local-e-commerce-startup-became-a-multimillion-dollar-company-in-less-than-a-year/ [3] https://ynaija.com/how-tunde-and-raphael-got-here-a-profile-of-jumias-million-dollar-ex-ceos/
csomar 7y ago
> Let’s also be honest here. Jumia didn’t succeed because it was “African”. Jumia owes part of its success to a marketplace that doesn’t believe in domestic brands. It’s heavy lifting to build a successful local brand, because you’re viewed suspiciously. In Tunisia, the Jumia brand is synonymous with shittiness. I used them for food delivery a few times. It was bad. Then one time, they didn't deliver. I called the customer service and after giving her my order number, she just hang up. They "succeeded" here because they are the first to "invest" and already have a platform for e-commerce. I don't think they'll be around much longer.
adz_6891 7y ago
> when a European company casually runs roughshod over that identity [of being an African company] and trades in it, it’s a slap in the face. It effectively lays a beachhead for digital colonizers in the space. “With enough millions you too can claim to be an emerging “African” growth co I applaud the directness of this article. It's an important issue, there are big market opportunities in Africa and entrepreneurs who are African nationals deserve better access to them. However, it's important to note there are very successful 'tech' companies part owned by African nationals and incorporated in Africa (as far as I can make out). E.g. SportsPesa [0] which has a mix of Kenyan/European/US founders [1] and looks like one of the most profitable East African companies right now [2] (it blows Jumia out of the water). It's a company doing well enough to sponsor a premier League football club shirt. I wonder whether the more serious barriers to young African entrepreneurs are their governments & regulatory environments. Incorporating a company, setting up bank accounts and so on in many African countries feels like a challenge in itself. And many African founders may look for US/European founders simply to incorporate entities elsewhere which will likely increase their chances of investment and security. This is where the "beachhead for digital colonizers" metaphor becomes multifaceted. I think the beachhead goes both ways, because there is value to an African national registering an entity, e.g in the UK [3]. This isn't really to do with identity, it's to do with practicality and trust. It's hard to trust institutions in a lot of African countries, and that's a disservice to the people and young entrepreneurs that live there. The smart ones probably won't wait around, they'll figure out the safest foundation for delivering tech products and services to people in Africa. I'd be interested to hear from any African entrepreneurs working in Africa here on what the practical barriers/solutions have been to setting up companies and getting them working. [0] https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapid=531230464 https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.a... [1] https://samrack.com/who-owns-sportpesa-here-is-a-list-of-the-owners-photos/ https://samrack.com/who-owns-sportpesa-here-is-a-list-of-the... [2] https://businesstoday.co.ke/sportpesa-float-ipo-nse-next-year/ https://businesstoday.co.ke/sportpesa-float-ipo-nse-next-yea... [3] https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/10682750/officers https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/10682750/officers
dingo_bat 7y ago
By this logic Elon Musk is the most successful African-American.
mruts 7y ago
This article seems to be pretty racist to me. I’m white and live in Africa and am a citizen of Tanzania. But by his standards I guess I’m not African and never will be? Sounds like a double standard.
NotPaidToPost 7y ago
Jumia operates exclusively (or close to) in Africa. It draws investments to Africa, it puts Africa on the tech map, and it helps its African customers. That's seems very positive for Africa.

79 points by amolo 7y ago

Interesting read. I’ve never heard of Jumia before today. The wiki page says their headquarters is in Lagos, but I didn’t see that mentioned here. Does all that mean they have an office/headquarters in Lagos but everything else is outside of Africa?

ralusek 7y ago

"our colonized minds think foreign brands are better." The language of the modern left allows for such forceful and vague assertions. What a simultaneously vacuous and damaging sentence that is. I take it antirez colonized us Americans into using Redis, right? Toyota has colonized our minds into buying their vehicles. No objectivity involved at all, just nationalistic power plays. Think of the removal of agency being afforded to Africans by the author. Surely it's not possible that Africans are simply using products that best suit their needs, but instead must be parasitized, and are being subjected against their best interests to a malicious western ideology.

externalreality 7y ago

It seems "Africa’s largest e-commerce company" is not African at all. It always pains me to see this when I visit small countries. Jobs are one thing, but if small countries find that massive resources are leaving the country in the name of those jobs then what's the point - it can be considered some form of trade at best and in the worst case colonization.

arcticbull 7y ago
It's hard to say that this is problematic. Canada's largest chain of coffee shops (Tim Hortons) is owned by a Brazilian company -- is that colonization? Saks Fifth Avenue, on the other hand, is Canadian -- is that? The Mandarin Oriental is owned by Jardine Maethson, headquartered in Hong Kong, but incorporated in Bermuda, with a long history trading opium in the South China Sea area -- is that exploitation today? That's just three random examples. Foreign investment allows companies to grow and succeed. I think there's sensitivity in this area due to past history though I don't think it's fair in this case. Owning a foreign company isn't 'exploitative.'
- externalreality 7y ago
  > Canada's largest chain of coffee shops (Tim Hortons) is owned by a Brazilian company. You are comparing apples and oranges. In many cases larger countries are able to conduct fair trade agreements. In the case of smaller countries they usually don't have the resources (military/political influence) to enact fair agreements and are "ripped off" by companies offering jobs.
  - iguy 7y ago
    But Brazil is larger than Canada by most measures. It has a larger population, and a higher GDP, and is 85% of the land area (but 0% frozen).
- robocat 7y ago
  Are the large majority of major companies in Africa African? The issue isn't about a few foreign companies. Is the majority of Canadian market cap foreign?
- amolo 7y ago
  They do not claim to be a Canadian company for PR and media attention. Thats the difference. Secondly, Jumia really exploits Africans to make a quick buck, they sell purely Chinese grade C goods all this is not benefiting Africans. This is modern day cannibalization. (and they still aren't profitable).
  - Canadauni 7y ago
    Are you saying that Tim Horton's doesn't claim to be Canadian for PR and media attention? Because that is basically the core of their marketing, to be synonymous with Canadian culture.
  - arcticbull 7y ago
    This is modern day eating other people? Yes Tim Hortons absolutely does.
charlesdm 7y ago
They have a German holding company. The shareholders could move it to Luxembourg tomorrow if they wanted, or Belgium / Cyprus / Malta / Singapore / Dubai / etc. This doesn't really matter, because holding companies are in their simplest form empty shells that merely hold shares of other operating entities. They group equity participations. You want a holding company to be based in a country with an established and stable legal system, of which the African continent has exactly none. Jumia is for all intents and purposes, an Africa focused group.

brudgers 7y ago

Jumia was set up by Rocket Internet. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-rocket-internet-jumia-ipo-idUSKCN1M01PG https://www.reuters.com/article/us-rocket-internet-jumia-ipo... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_Internet https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocket_Internet

deogeo 7y ago

The title says 'a digital colonization thread' - so foreign ownership or control of companies is colonization? Does that apply to, for example, US-owned companies in Europe? Or Chinese-owned companies in the US?

gumby 7y ago
Many people do feel that way, though I personally find the idea of any significant multinational as being from a specific country silly.
- deogeo 7y ago
  From the recent front-page story https://www.politico.eu/blogs/the-coming-wars/2019/04/how-europe-learned-to-fear-china/ https://www.politico.eu/blogs/the-coming-wars/2019/04/how-eu...: "Then there was Kuka, the crown jewel of German robotics, which was taken over by Chinese home-appliance maker Midea in 2016. What happened next has become part of a now recognizable pattern: Once a firm is acquired by a Chinese company, its European suppliers are abandoned for Chinese value chains." Silly or not, Chinese firms will favor other Chinese firms. This behavior isn't limited to China.
  - gumby 7y ago
    Kuka is small potatoes. I really should have been clearer that by "significant" I think of most of the Global 200: Exxon, Apple Nestlé, Danone, Google et al: Their revenues are global and their interests are global, as are their hiring, lobbying, usw.
rising-sky 7y ago
If you read past the title, I think the author's point is that, this is from a legal and business perspective a patently German company that is presenting itself as African solely because it currently does its business there exclusively. US-owned or registered companies in Europe don't typically masquerade as European because they operate there
- 7y ago

neximo64 7y ago

Is Naspers an African company or does that not count either because of its roots

EtienneK 7y ago
Furthermore, since Tencent’s largest shareholder is African, does that make Tencent and African company? This question is rhetorical.
amolo 7y ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naspers https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naspers Naspers was founded in South Africa so yes its African. Its services and activities benefiti Africans so yes, it its African. Jumia on the other hand, unless you are from around here and have used Jumia, you will understand my point. Read my other comments for reference.
- neximo64 7y ago
  South African 'Afrikaans' isn't African if you're following the same logic as Jumia

chirau 7y ago

An "African company" does not necessarily mean a company registered in Africa or owned by Africans. When us Africans refer to something as African, it can mean several things. Allow me to call it a FUBU approach. That means "For Us, By Us". It can also mean "For Us or By Us" This means the entity does not necessarily have to be of African origin, it can just be a result of its focus on Africa. Jumia operates exclusively in Africa, and by virtue of that and our Ubuntu mentality, it is for all intents and purposes, one of us. Though not officially. When Africans supported the French soccer team last year at the World Cup as "our African team", do you really think Africans are not aware that France is not in Africa and was not representing Africa either. It's just a social construct that gives us something to cheer about, historically we haven't had much. The same FUBU mentality is also why a lot of Africans considered non-Africans "African heroes". Where I come from, Fidel Castro is an African hero for educating our doctors for free and sending doctors of their own. It's not because he is African. It is simply because of FUBU and Ubuntu.

Edmond 7y ago
I am afraid you're making quite a statement there on behalf of all Africans...This African completely disagrees :)
- rising-sky 7y ago
  Exactly, so do I
- chirau 7y ago
  And that is totally fine. I am sure my opinion does not represent 100% of Africans.
rising-sky 7y ago
As a converse example, Apple operates globally, no one is going to mistake them for not being an American company, let's not make excuses for what can arguably be described as a usurp on African identity. From the standpoint of a corporate entity, they are not incorporated in Africa nor have substantial corporate representation in Africa. Everything else is secondary. As the author points out Coca-Cola has immense presence in Africa, and is definitely a far more recognizable brand than Jumia even with current exclusivity, that does not translate into being an African company

deesep 7y ago

"Let’s also be honest here. Jumia didn’t succeed because it was “African”. Jumia owes part of its success to a marketplace that doesn’t believe in domestic brands. It’s heavy lifting to build a successful local brand, because you’re viewed suspiciously." I live in Ghana, and I don't shop on Jumia[1] because i don't believe in domestic brands. It's a ridiculous claim. This[2] is a local brand that has made 10,000+ successful sales via Jumia. The major challenge of doing E-commerce in Africa is that excluding some affluent parts, many towns and cities don't have functioning address grids. It's a complete mess and one requires the use of landmarks and long descriptions to locate places. Jumia representatives always call to ask for directions to your location. If they get lost, you could have them give the phone to anyone nearby who is familiar with the neighborhood. You can then have the stranger direct them(Jumia delivery reps) to your location. It may be unconventional, but works. I and millions of people who shop on Jumia do so cause it's convenient and provides a needed service. Until a few days ago, I had no idea it's a German company and its founders are french. Calling it an African company when it's not may be deceptive, but please don't say it's successful because Africans don't love local brands. [1] - https://www.jumia.com.gh/ https://www.jumia.com.gh/ [2] - https://www.jumia.com.gh/white-label-woven-kente-fabric-6-yards-multicolour-67916.html https://www.jumia.com.gh/white-label-woven-kente-fabric-6-ya...

externalreality 7y ago
You shop on Jumia because it's convenient. It's also convenient for foreign interest to setup an Amazon like business to skim millions off the top of an economy that can scarcely afford it. The point is, Jumia is not good for Ghana, a domestic company would create more jobs and keep hundreds of millions of dollars of wealth from leaving the country. Its not about whether or not you get your 1st world products delivered on time, its about pulling yourself out of the 3rd world and Jumia is not helping you with that. Many people forget that when Japan first started producing cars they were so bad at it some models didn't even operate in the rain. Or that American steel, originally, was supremely subpar to British steel. Its about doing whats best for the country - and having some foreign entity control a good portion of the commerce in the country (especially when it is so easy to build your own) is not a good idea for an emerging economy. Remember, also, that Jumia will have the same control over market that Amazon does which is immense power and why the United States is considering limiting Amazon's power over the market. Basically, if Jumia begins to not only control the market but participate in the market as well it will be bad for these small nations.

ntrly 7y ago

All companies are entirely their shareholder's so unless a national government has a controlling stake in a company no company is any country's company much less a continent's one. You might say Jumia is an African brand, brands are fictions created by companies specifically for the purpose of being associated with something potentially valued by consumers in a given market.

anovikov 7y ago

What's bad about it? This is one big field startups have to disrupt yet: colonization. Africa probably can't work on its own, we just have to really figure out colonization. Yes people largely gave up on it in 1960s because it didn't make money, but they just didn't have that Google moment there, web search also didn't make money in 1990s. Many places in the world would benefit from proper adult oversight. Politicians can't say it because they need votes. But why businessmen should lie to themselves?

MetalGuru 7y ago

Can someone explain to me why Amazon can’t be the Amazon of Africa?

luminati 7y ago

I understand the spirit of the tweet storm - but please let me lulz myself a bit => Tencent is an African majority owned company ;)

dmix 7y ago

> They each hold just over 2% of the company’s shares. Wow, 4% foreign ownership of stock by founders who operate a business entirely in Africa /s. Is this really the substance of this expose? Especially considering founder stock isn't how the vast majority of how value is returned to society in day-to-day business operations. But rather through the value delivery of the businesses to consumers and paying peoples employees. Even the founders living and operating in Africa would mean a massive chunk of their dividends/salary would be going back into the African economy. There are a million ways companies can generate value to a region/continent. The idea that a company is entirely extracting capital/value from other countries, because the (4% minority ownership) founders are foreign-born and the corporation was registered in Europe is not how that works. Just like how saying a couple guys from Boston, with a company registered in Delware, but their entire operations and business-model is based in California ...is not primarily generating value for California but Boston/Delware. At most this could only potentially reduce the narrative about individual success potential of African business owners. But that doesn't make it any less an African business and a model that businesses can work locally. Which is all investors care about. Even in SV 90% of investors won't look at you until you've somewhat proven your business-model OR you have had past success + network. Rarely do they invest blind unless it's a trendy highly-well timed startup they are looking to gamble on in a first-to-market type investment... but even that is rare. The authors claim this is merely dismissible by the founders 'melanin' levels doesn't really hold up to scrutiny. https://twitter.com/tmsruge/status/1117106622357299200 https://twitter.com/tmsruge/status/1117106622357299200

michaelmrose 7y ago
They hold 4% how much of the remaining 96% is foreign owned?

wilsonfiifi 7y ago

Actually Jumia was founded by 2 West Africans but it seems it’s history is being rewritten [0][1]. Unless there are two Jumias. This article [2] in particular, written in 2013, is no longer available and doesn't appear to be available in the wayback machine. edit: Seems there's a more in depth article from 2014 [3] [0] https://vc4a.com/blog/2013/09/03/online-retail-becomes-a-reality-in-africas-biggest-market-behind-the-scenes-with-nigerian-internet-startup-jumia/ [1] https://techcabal.com/2014/01/30/jumia-confirms-exit-tunde-kehinde-raphael-afaedor-announces-new-ceos/ [2] https://vc4a.com/blog/2013/08/09/jumia-nigeria-how-a-local-e-commerce-startup-became-a-multimillion-dollar-company-in-less-than-a-year/ [3] https://ynaija.com/how-tunde-and-raphael-got-here-a-profile-of-jumias-million-dollar-ex-ceos/

csomar 7y ago

> Let’s also be honest here. Jumia didn’t succeed because it was “African”. Jumia owes part of its success to a marketplace that doesn’t believe in domestic brands. It’s heavy lifting to build a successful local brand, because you’re viewed suspiciously. In Tunisia, the Jumia brand is synonymous with shittiness. I used them for food delivery a few times. It was bad. Then one time, they didn't deliver. I called the customer service and after giving her my order number, she just hang up. They "succeeded" here because they are the first to "invest" and already have a platform for e-commerce. I don't think they'll be around much longer.

adz_6891 7y ago

> when a European company casually runs roughshod over that identity [of being an African company] and trades in it, it’s a slap in the face. It effectively lays a beachhead for digital colonizers in the space. “With enough millions you too can claim to be an emerging “African” growth co I applaud the directness of this article. It's an important issue, there are big market opportunities in Africa and entrepreneurs who are African nationals deserve better access to them. However, it's important to note there are very successful 'tech' companies part owned by African nationals and incorporated in Africa (as far as I can make out). E.g. SportsPesa [0] which has a mix of Kenyan/European/US founders [1] and looks like one of the most profitable East African companies right now [2] (it blows Jumia out of the water). It's a company doing well enough to sponsor a premier League football club shirt. I wonder whether the more serious barriers to young African entrepreneurs are their governments & regulatory environments. Incorporating a company, setting up bank accounts and so on in many African countries feels like a challenge in itself. And many African founders may look for US/European founders simply to incorporate entities elsewhere which will likely increase their chances of investment and security. This is where the "beachhead for digital colonizers" metaphor becomes multifaceted. I think the beachhead goes both ways, because there is value to an African national registering an entity, e.g in the UK [3]. This isn't really to do with identity, it's to do with practicality and trust. It's hard to trust institutions in a lot of African countries, and that's a disservice to the people and young entrepreneurs that live there. The smart ones probably won't wait around, they'll figure out the safest foundation for delivering tech products and services to people in Africa. I'd be interested to hear from any African entrepreneurs working in Africa here on what the practical barriers/solutions have been to setting up companies and getting them working. [0] https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapid=531230464 https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.a... [1] https://samrack.com/who-owns-sportpesa-here-is-a-list-of-the-owners-photos/ https://samrack.com/who-owns-sportpesa-here-is-a-list-of-the... [2] https://businesstoday.co.ke/sportpesa-float-ipo-nse-next-year/ https://businesstoday.co.ke/sportpesa-float-ipo-nse-next-yea... [3] https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/10682750/officers https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/10682750/officers

dingo_bat 7y ago

By this logic Elon Musk is the most successful African-American.

mruts 7y ago

This article seems to be pretty racist to me. I’m white and live in Africa and am a citizen of Tanzania. But by his standards I guess I’m not African and never will be? Sounds like a double standard.

NotPaidToPost 7y ago

Jumia operates exclusively (or close to) in Africa. It draws investments to Africa, it puts Africa on the tech map, and it helps its African customers. That's seems very positive for Africa.