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I have been interested in your company since I first heard of it a while ago so I am glad to see it is doing well. How is the infrastructure in Rwanda with rega

by joseph 13y ago

I have been interested in your company since I first heard of it a while ago so I am glad to see it is doing well. How is the infrastructure in Rwanda with regards to ecommerce? I have investigated doing business in Kenya but two of the biggest problems there are 1) online payments are not easy since few people use credit cards and paying online with M-Pesa is clumsy, and 2) there are no street addresses so it makes certain types of ecommerce difficult since there is no address to deliver a product if you are selling a physical one, or doing any type of pickup/delivery service involving locations. How are these issues dealt with in Rwanda?

nicpottier 13y ago
Yes, both those challenges still exist, payments are actually even worse here than Kenya because there isn't huge adoption of any mobile money platform yet. Both of those pretty much preclude doing anything ecommerce related
shoover 13y ago
And to look at commerce in the other direction, how is access to things you need for home/work? Say you need a new development laptop, are you going to amazon, local retain, or something else? More on the consumables side, how's the coffee?
- nicpottier 13y ago
  Heh, the answer here is friends with suitcases. You can buy some electronics here, Samsung and LG have a big presence, but it is at a premium. We are an Apple shop and all MBPs were bought in the states by us or friends. That might sound like a bad thing but it is actually one of my favorite things about living here. You are just completely separated and freed from the crazed consumer culture of the States, just because none of it is available. And you don't realize how much that frees your head space (or at least mine) until you experience it. It is a fantastic place to just get work done because there is very little to distract you, in every respect really. Coffee is pretty great if you buy the good stuff, though really the very best gets bought up and exported.
  - shoover 13y ago
    I like it, friends with suitcases works! I hear you on the head space. Thanks for the response.

by joseph 13y ago

nicpottier 13y ago

Yes, both those challenges still exist, payments are actually even worse here than Kenya because there isn't huge adoption of any mobile money platform yet. Both of those pretty much preclude doing anything ecommerce related

shoover 13y ago

And to look at commerce in the other direction, how is access to things you need for home/work? Say you need a new development laptop, are you going to amazon, local retain, or something else? More on the consumables side, how's the coffee?

nicpottier 13y ago
Heh, the answer here is friends with suitcases. You can buy some electronics here, Samsung and LG have a big presence, but it is at a premium. We are an Apple shop and all MBPs were bought in the states by us or friends. That might sound like a bad thing but it is actually one of my favorite things about living here. You are just completely separated and freed from the crazed consumer culture of the States, just because none of it is available. And you don't realize how much that frees your head space (or at least mine) until you experience it. It is a fantastic place to just get work done because there is very little to distract you, in every respect really. Coffee is pretty great if you buy the good stuff, though really the very best gets bought up and exported.
- shoover 13y ago
  I like it, friends with suitcases works! I hear you on the head space. Thanks for the response.