Gokada, the Nigeria-based last mile delivery, logistics and transportation startup, has launched in Ibadan following consolidated growth in Lagos.
Founded in 2018 as a ride-hailing app, Gokada has evolved to become a leading food delivery, parcel delivery, and last-mile e-commerce fulfillment solution.
The startup secured US$5.3 million in Series A funding in 2019, but was then hit by Lagos state’s motorcycle ban and the untimely death of founder Fahim Saleh. It has bounced back, however, and now has one of the largest fleets of delivery drivers in Lagos and empowers over 30,000 Nigerian businesses to help them serve their customers.
Following the recent successful launch of its super app and as part of its expansion strategy, the company is rolling out operations in Ibadan across its food delivery (GFood) and logistics services (GSend), with plans to resume ride-hailing (GRide) and e-commerce (GShop) later in the year.
As one of Nigeria’s crucial commercial centres with a close proximity to Lagos, Gokada said Ibadan offers significant demand for its last mile delivery services. It also claimed the move would generate thousands of jobs for riders. Having established a strong track record in Lagos, completing more than 1.5 million deliveries, Gokada is focused on replicating its success in Ibadan, where it has onboarded more than 100 restaurants who can now offer delivery to their customers through the Gokada GFood menu in its Super App.
Once the super app is successfully deployed in a second city, Gokada will begin planning for further hubs in Abuja, Port Harcourt and Ogun.
“Since launching just a few months ago, the Gokada super app has connected thousands of customers and businesses in Lagos and we are excited to bring our unparalleled service to Ibadan. We want to continue catalysing the transformation of Nigeria’s transport infrastructure through our ultra reliable last-mile delivery solutions; and it is essential to have a solid foundation, particularly with our ever-improving technology, before deploying in a new location,” said Nikhil Goel, the startup’s chief executive officer (CEO).
“We built the largest fleet of delivery riders in Lagos, and we want to do the same here in Ibadan, and offer so much more. Now we’ve reached a juncture where we can move forward with a rigorous expansion strategy that will potentially create entrepreneurial opportunities for thousands of riders to run their own ‘businesses in a box’. The changing business landscape of commerce requires reliable tech-enabled solutions, and while Gokada has come a long way in being part of the change, we’re focussed on further growth across the country.”
