Here’s why Konga’s merger with Yudala is a big deal

Nigerian e-commerce brand, Konga, will be retaining its name as the official merger with Yudala kicks off on May 1, 2018.

The brand, which tags itself “Nigeria’s largest online mall”, will now operate an online and offline business in association with Yudala.

Though it was widely reported that Yudala acquired Konga with the help of Zinox Group, Yudala’s CEO, Prince Nnamdi Ekeh, noted that the new Konga is an operational merger where both companies combine their operations to improve synergy.

Also, the new Konga will operate with dual CEOs in the persons of Nick Imudia, who will be in charge of online operations, and Prince Nnamdi Ekeh who will be responsible for offline operations.

According to official statements from Konga, both companies will leverage on the combined strengths of their e-commerce platforms to further broaden the scope of organized retail and e-commerce in Nigeria.

Speaking on the operational merger, Konga’s chairman, Olusiji Ijogun, said, “Combining forces to power the new Konga will enable us effectively achieve our goals of platform expansion and accelerated growth, as we embark on an ambitious journey to redefine the retail ecosystem with the industry’s most advanced technology.”

ALSO READ: Zinox Group acquires Konga, one of Nigeria's biggest e-commerce companies

Who gains most from the new Konga?

Despite the report that Yudala acquired Konga with the help of Zinox Group, Yudala and Konga are yet to reveal the company with the bigger stake after the merger.

This leaves us wondering who gains most from the new Konga and what will be the vision for the new Konga.

According to Konga’s ex-executive, Ifeanyi Abraham, Leo Stan Ekeh and his Zinox Group will be smiling and content with the achievement of Yudala.

Abraham went further to say with the right team, the e-commerce in Nigeria and Africa stand the chance to gain so much as this operational merger might be the platform to give Alibaba a run for its money from Africa.

Yudala, haven kicked off with a mandate of 150 stores in the first 18 months of operations and 512 shops in Nigeria’s local government councils within three years, already has a strong offline presence. Konga, on the other hand, has a bigger name and more online competence.

It should also be noted that Konga, before the merger, had a partnership with Nipost (Nigerian Postal Service) that saw Konga leverage upon the postal service’s establish logistics network. Nipost has about 5,000 locations nationwide.

KongaPay’s huge potential

One of Konga’s biggest assets is KongaPay, it’s mobile money platform. This merger will see the product ride on Yudala’s shoulders nationwide, providing it the potential to compete on a larger scale.

In time, it is possible that Konga could consider getting listed on the Nigeria Stock Exchange market.