Sabi Marketplace is a well-known B2B platform in Africa that links suppliers and merchants, filling in trade and logistical gaps for the unorganized sector. Distributors can offer goods to wholesalers and resellers in minimum purchase quantities through Sabi, a B2B platform with its headquarters in Lagos. It provides free business tools, logistics, warehousing software, and financial options to assist services.
Sabi, which recently raised $38 million in Series B funding, achieved a valuation of $300 million and surpassed $1 billion in yearly Gross Merchandise Volume (GMV), connecting suppliers and retailers in Africa’s $1 trillion retail sector by removing traditional trade barriers. It was established in 2021 and links 300,000 retailers, contributing to the expansion of the internet commerce market.
Sabi is a digital B2B platform launched in Nigeria in 2020 to connect small merchants with suppliers of fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), electronics, and commodities, with a focus on Africa’s informal economy. Recognizing that many businesses operate without conventional supply chains, Sabi provides tools for ordering, payment, and delivery, allowing merchants easy access to crucial services. It has expanded its products to include inventory management and credit options, supporting over 300,000 businesses and processing transactions across multiple sectors, contributing to $1.2 billion in sales through its ERP application.
Sabi’s revolutionary platform streamlines both domestic and cross-border supply chain transactions while optimizing commerce for Africa’s informal sector, which accounts for more than 60% of Nigeria’s GDP. With a user-friendly design that can be accessed via an app or the web, the platform helps customers manage their businesses efficiently by providing inventory tools, sales analysis, and financing options. Additionally, Sabi collaborates with logistics companies to guarantee effective order fulfillment.
Anu Adasolum and Ademola Adesina co-founded the company to solve the issues that informal enterprises encounter. With the support of investors like CRE Ventures and Janngo Capital, Sabi prioritizes service accessibility for expanding companies while making sure the distinctive characteristics of Africa’s unorganized sector are recognized and valued. By providing a variety of cutting-edge goods and services specifically designed for this underserved market niche, Sabi hopes to ease current business growth obstacles as it grows its network to include more merchants and service providers.
Sabi achieved $1 billion in annualized gross merchandise value by mid-2023, marking rapid growth within three years of its inception. Founded in 2020 as a spinoff of Rensource and co-founded by Anu Adedoyin Adasolum. Sabi initially focused on Nigeria’s informal trade sector, which significantly contributed to its traction. Due to the high demand from small retailers. The company secured a $38 million Series B funding round in 2023, elevating its valuation to $300 million.
The platform’s merchant count surged from 175,000 in 2021 to over 300,000, aided by strategic partnerships. That ensured stock availability and essential access to credit, logistics, and software support for sales tracking. Addressing a substantial part of Nigeria’s informal economy, which accounts for approximately 57.7% of GDP. As well as encompasses over 39 million micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises. Sabi implemented customized products that fill specific market gaps, distinguishing itself from traditional B2B marketplaces.
Sabi’s growth is attributed to its asset-light business model, which contrasts with competitors relying heavily on warehousing. This model enabled efficient digitization of Nigeria’s informal retail. It connects merchants with suppliers while providing integrated financing and inventory management services. Initially concentrated on fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), Sabi has since diversified its operations. And launched the TRACE segment focused on high-value agricultural exports.
As of mid-2023, Sabi reported monthly exports exceeding 20,000 tons of commodities like minerals and cash crops. It expands operations into the U.S. market while reinforcing compliance and traceability strategies to meet international sourcing transparency standards. Under the guidance of Anu Adedoyin Adasolum, Sabi’s journey exemplifies a robust growth trajectory within the African e-commerce sector.
Sabi connects African companies directly with wholesalers because they face large supply chain gaps. Small retailers have difficulty obtaining credit, which Sabi addresses by providing finance based on their transaction history. Although logistical delays are frequent, Sabi arranges delivery to shorten wait periods. Many shops use manual inventory management, whereas Sabi offers options for real-time stock tracking. Pricing discrepancies are reduced since aggregated vendors give competitive rates, and Sabi facilitates faster transactions via digital payment alternatives.
Sabi offers useful insights for improved decision-making that are in line with the demands of the B2B marketplace in Africa. Whereas the informal sector suffers from a lack of data. This opens up new markets for suppliers outside of local consumers while lowering expenses and risks. Sabi makes commerce easier by converting disjointed systems into effective networks. They also do this by giving unofficial traders the ability to monitor sales results and obtain financing. Sabi plans to grow into other African nations, with over 10,000 agents in Nigeria. And 200,000 registered merchants producing over US$2 billion in sales. Anu and Demmy, the founders, understand how inadequate infrastructure impedes merchants. Those who frequently spend too much time on logistical issues rather than concentrating on essential company operations.
Technology plays a key role in Sabi, which uses AI to estimate demand and make recommendations specifically for mobile-first users in Africa. Nigeria has a high smartphone penetration rate; therefore, logistics operations are guided by data analytics to optimize routes in the face of urban congestion. Sabi increases warehouses to speed fulfillment and combines logistics with partnerships for last-mile delivery. Payment technology guarantees safe transactions, and export norms will be improved by future traceability features. For efficient goods movement and economic efficiency, Nigeria’s logistics innovation must strike a balance between technical improvements and investments in human and physical infrastructure, particularly in a maritime-driven economy that depends on road-based distribution.
Addressing challenges in B2B eCommerce necessitates local adaptations and resilient solutions. Key challenges include poorly structured product data, integration issues with existing business systems, complex pricing management, slow website performance, and limited self-service options. Effective solutions involve organized product catalogs, API utilization for seamless integration, smart pricing tools, improved website speed through scalable platforms, and enhanced self-service functionalities for companies in the eCommerce sector.
In general, Sabi is rapidly expanding in the informal sector, servicing over 300,000 merchants in Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa and generating over $1 billion in annual Gross Merchandise Value with a month-on-month growth rate surpassing 20%. With an emphasis on sustainable infrastructure for B2B payments and the export of minerals and agricultural goods, it has shifted to an asset-light approach.
In order to digitize the offline economy, Sabi uses a hybrid strategy that combines embedded banking solutions with applications and offline agents. Its collaborations for worldwide demand and its development into Tanzania, Malawi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo demonstrate its significance in connecting domestic output with global markets. African entrepreneurship is increasingly concentrated on digitizing informal economies through creative, high-margin solutions, as seen by successful fundraising rounds that show great investor confidence in its sustainable expansion.