Nigerian e-commerce startup Konga.com has opened a new engineering centre in Yaba, Lagos, which the company said was necessitated by the growth of its software development team.
Konga said it now employs over 100 software engineers in its Lagos office, tasked with working on the Konga.com website and creating innovative features for the platform.
The team recently developed the Konga Shopping app for Android and iOS, as well as creating and maintaining the SellerHQ platform, which allows private sellers across Nigeria to trade on the platform.
The startup also announced the opening of an secondary engineering centre in Cape Town, South Africa; with plans to establishment a knowledge exchange programme between the two hubs.
“Konga hires the finest multidisciplinary engineers in Nigeria to design and develop the core systems for our online customer experience today; ranging from the actual e-retailer site to other back-end systems.Our team is driven by the challenge to engineer world class systems to help Konga be the engine of trade and commerce in Africa,” said Olatokunbo Fagbamigbe, director of products and enterprises-technology at Konga.
According to chief executive officer (CEO) of Konga Sim Shagaya, technology has a key role to play in transforming the retail environment in Nigeria; with e-commerce holding the potential to be a key industry in the Nigerian economy.
“The growth potential for e-commerce in Nigeria is astronomical. We recognize that to be successful in this industry, every point in the consumer’s online shopping experience on Konga must be first-rate. From providing ease when placing orders, to the moment the consumer holds the product in his hands, our proprietary technology follows through to ensure that the experience is as satisfying as possible,” Shagaya said.
Konga also recently rolled out a logistics arm to its operations – named KExpress – intended to expedite delivery of goods traded on the platform, comprising 200 vehicles.
Konga last month secured an undisclosed amount of further funding, thought to be in the region of US$40 million to US$60 million; while in January the company raised US$25 million in Series B funding from Naspers and Kinnevik.
