How to navigate competition in online retail industry
After university, Winnie Ikatwa tarmacked for five years hunting for a job. She was already married and with four children by the time she got her first job. But her passion was in business rather than being employed, as she tells Bernard Sigei.
What motivated you to start this business when online shopping was still very new to Kenya?
I have been in the online shopping space for eight years now. I started the business without capital, and I had no background in business, and not even my family ever did business. But I did a lot of research on the internet about businesses that one can start with little cash. I wanted to know how can I shop without having to physically go to the supermarket.
I wanted to solve the problem for many who are not keen on physical visits to the store to buy stuff. My lightbulb moment came when Nakumatt Downtown Supermarket burnt down with shoppers inside in 2009. I felt it was the moment for me to implement my idea of Epepea Online Supermarket.
What are the needs that epepea solves that enable the business to thrive in competitive market space? I saw a need where people living abroad are interested in supporting their parents in Kenya. They do this by sending them money back in the rural areas to buy foodstuff. My business links the diaspora client with their family back home through ensuring whatever the family needs are bought and delivered safely to them. When I started, I focused on Kenyans in diaspora because they understood the role internet plays when shopping.
I was solving a problem for them because most felt that when they sent money to their parents, it would be diverted to other uses. We have created a relationship with supermarkets across the country where the extended families and elderly parents are, and they get their supplies sorted fast.
Another unique selling point is that epepea gives a personal touch to every customer who visits our website. The people who use my platform have become more of family than just business customers. I am the link between customers from abroad and their family here.
Tell us about doing online business during the Covid-19 pandemic Opportunity favours the prepared.
The Coronavirus pandemic has been our time of elevation because the season has given us an opportunity to serve so many people and families. When the pandemic started, people were mostly locked down at home and were advised to use other means to get their supplies bought. This helped because online shopping took off almost in an instant. In one month, I had over 10 million visits until our website almost crashed!
We had requests from many supermarkets to partner with them because they knew what we have been doing all these years. I signed on more supermarkets such as Maguna’s which has reach in many towns in the country.
We are now averaging a million hits monthly and more enquiries keep coming as businesses seek our partnership, especially advertisers. Describe your typical working day I report to my workstation by 6 o’clock and start by checking any latest communication on email, WhatsApp and other channels. By 8 o’clock, the orders that have been placed from abroad are all ready to be executed by the supermarket nearest to the customer who is to be served.
We work towards delivering all orders on the same day. We cannot afford to leave the epepea.com website in less than good shape because that is our main oice. It must be maintained well always. After the orders have been placed, I take my break and do other things at home. I pick it up again in the afternoon and by evening, I close for the day at around 5 o'clock.
November to January are usually the busiest months for us because of the holiday season and back to school rush. February also brings in orders due to Valentine’s Day as customer orders that demand branding of products, hampers, and other gift items are on the increase.
April again is busy because of holidays. Our busiest days of the week are Tuesdays to Thursdays. Weekends are dedicated to my family and social life.
How do you cope with fatigue due to too much work?
We do not deal in emergency items so there is no crazy rush to take orders or deliver. We have some employees handling orders and queries at night. Our clients make enquiries at night since they are in the diaspora. Our biggest clients are from Germany and United Kingdom. Others are in US, South Africa, Dubai, Qatar among others. The Kenyan parents who we shop for are mostly found in Nyanza, Homa Bay, Central Kenya and Meru. But generally, we have been able to serve almost every corner of this country.
Does your family support your business or they feel you’d be better off employed?
My children all know about my business well. I ensure they understand how it works so that they are comfortable explaining to someone else. When I got the first job as an administrative manager in a car tracking business, my heart was still longing to be back on the streets doing my own thing. I came up with a strategy. I asked to be moved to the sales department so that I can learn the ropes of the business. For this move, I had to take a pay cut. I then requested to be a freelance salesperson after about eight months of learning. This helped me learn how to manoeuvre in my own business.
It was very tempting when I decided to venture out into my own business because the car track industry was so lucrative at that time.
What are some of the toughest challenges and how do you beat them?
One tough thing is to want to perfect every little thing, hence leading to stagnation instead of growth. For example, I keep wanting to change the website to make it look better, and yet the customers say the website is working well. In business, you must have a thick skin, and look at your business as one with its own life. It has its own growth path and you have to let it grow.
Is there a future with online shopping? I have never met most of the clients that I work with, but we have done business for many years. No cheating or undercutting the other. That is where the world is now. The whole idea is that business thrives on trust. Even clients in diaspora send money based on trust, and when they see the quality of service given to their families, they mostly tend to refer more people to the online shopping platform. The future with online shopping is yet to be felt. It is too big. For instance, between a client in London, and their parents in Homa Bay, there is my platform involved, a supermarket in Homa Bay to execute the order, and a bodaboda guy to make the delivery. I keep a very lean staff because epepea’s biggest strength is a partnership with the supermarkets and other stores in various locations. In the process, we push business for these shops. When an order comes in, the supermarket ensures that the shopping is delivered from their shop to the home of the customer. The shops ensure they are well stocked. Look at how many people have benefitted in that value chain.
How are you re-inventing your business in order to remain relevant in the market?
I am keen on giving Kenyans and even people far away a chance to learn more about the products that are in the Kenyan market. For instance, a number of them left Kenya when a product like margarine was only found as Blueband. Now I want them to interact with other new products.
This will give customers a chance to learn about the product and make an informed choice before they go to buy. Buying and selling of products is not all there is in the online shopping space. The value is in offering customers the right product information. The market is still missing out on some of the things they need to know. This is where the gap is.
