- Chowdeck, a Nigerian startup backed by Y Combinator, aims to compete with established players like Jumia and Bolt.
- Founded by Femi Aluko, Olumide Ojo, and Lanre Yusuf, Chowdeck offers a 30-minute delivery period for food and groceries.
- The startup initially tested its model with bicycles in front of local restaurants and has since grown to serve over 500,000 customers with a network of over 3,000 riders.
Nigerians prefer food to all other things and spend a massive amount of money on it, up to 60%. This is the world's highest figure because it is combined with the growth of the online food scoop market.
The Nigerian food delivery market has the opportunity for its value to be between $2 billion and $3 billion by 2032.
Alongside the work market opportunities, there is no champion. In the race for the No.1 spot, Chowdeck, a Nigerian startup supported by Y Combinator and with a $2.5 million seed investment.
They would have to deal with the already established players such as Jumia and Bolt, who have failed to get the rewards as anticipated in business terms.
Chowdeck, an online meal and grocery ordering platform that breaks barriers by giving consumers the convenience of ordering food and groceries from grocers and supermarkets, thus getting a 30-minute delivery period, was founded by Femi Aluko, Olumide Ojo, and Lanre Yusuf.
On their honeymoon trip to Dubai, the writer's wife got the hands-on experience of fast deliveries and exemplary customer service. Seeing a business opportunity, they founded their enterprise.
An attitude of promptness was an aspect that Aluko found impressive in the case of the United Arab Emirates.
For instance, in Nigeria, the delivery takes about one to two hours, but in the United Arab Emirates, they are quick to get the food within a short time.
On viewing how he has done it in China, he intends to incorporate it likewise in Nigeria and compete for a proportion of the market.
In the first half of 2023, Ghanaians spent some ₦60 trillion ($34.4 billion) to buy food and household items, which points to a promising future in the food delivery business.
Aluko and his partners sought to see if the idea could go further by placing a couple of bicycles in front of local restaurants.
They developed the appropriate model and introduced the first original product version on 10 October 2021.
Since the beginning, their application has grown impressively, gathering more than three thousand riders and serving over 5fivehundred thousand.
Edited By Annette George
