Coca-Cola Nigeria unit said it has seen a threefold increase in e-commerce sales this year after virus-induced lockdowns inspired a change in the country’s consumer habits. The rise is attributed to a change in consumer habits after the pandemic forced lockdowns in Nigeria, Africa’s biggest economy.
Brand Spur reports that the sales boom can also be traced to the embrace of thriving e-Commerce platforms such as Konga, Jumia etc, which had listed Coca-Cola products and helped deliver the items seamlessly to consumers who were at home as a result of the lockdown.
Alfred Olajide, Chief Executive Officer, told Bloomberg that,
“The first one month of Covid-19 was the pivot point. We have more than tripled the e-commerce business that we have in our portfolio,”.
The beverage company is partnering with online shopping firms including Jumia Technologies AG, a Berlin-based e-commerce platform that provides services in Lagos to push its products in the country, according to Olajide.
“Right now e-commerce orders as a proportion of sales are still in the single-digit but the ambition for us is to scale it to double-digit and make it a very big significant channel of choice for our consumers. We are partnering to help the trend grow and you will see more of that coming through in our strategy.”
While high inflation rate and unemployment have eroded disposable income, the company is starting to see sales return in 2021 and probably match the pre-covid period as the economy improves, Olajide said.
Furthermore, he has expressed optimism that sales figures will rebound to match pre-COVID-19 highs; in spite of the spiralling inflation rate and reduced disposable income due to the unemployment rate.
In addition, Olajide revealed that Coca-Cola has adjusted prices; while also rolling out smaller, more value-based pack sizes to cater for consumers that have low disposable income. He noted that this strategy has seen sales recover this year after they took a knock in 2020.
