More job cuts loom as Sendy changes course in Nigeria • TechCrunch

In October last year, Sendy, a Kenyan logistics company, ended its sourcing service, which allowed retailers to buy fast-moving consumer goods directly from manufacturers, saying it was focusing entirely on its end-to-end processing offer.

A few months later, the company ceased its field operations in Nigeria, one of its four markets in Africa. This means it will no longer process orders in the West African country, saying it has become “a fully integrated technology solution” that will connect shoppers online with the right logistics providers. Its execution service remains unchanged on other markets.

The new changes imply that Sendy will abandon its asset-rich model that facilitated order fulfillment from package pickup, warehousing to last mile delivery in Nigeria. The company, which launched in Nigeria in late 2021, said the move was necessitated by the need to find the right type of product for the market.

Sendy ceases field operations in Nigeria

It was not immediately clear how many employees would be affected by the shutdown of around 220 employees, but Sendy confirmed that some jobs will be lost in his latest round of layoffs.

“Thriving continues to be at the heart of what Sendy does. We don’t pivot. In Nigeria, we made the decision to cease field operations and instead focus on getting the right product. This means that we will continue to connect sellers to logistics providers, but no longer consign their goods,” said Sendy Nigeria Managing Director Daniel Edeimu.

“Sendy, as a fully integrated technology solution, will receive orders through e-commerce plugins, ERPs or APIs and assistance in finding the best logistics partners and advising sellers,” Edeimu said, adding that the company plans to offer additional services such as financial services and showcases.

Sendy, co-founded in 2015 by Kenyans Evanson Biwott and Don Okoth and American Malaika Judd, has changed its approach in its markets, including Kenya, Uganda and Côte d’Ivoire, in recent months to improve efficiency while adjusting to macroeconomic headwinds that have made it difficult to raise funds.

It aimed to raise $100 million last year and successfully raised undisclosed funds from MOL PLUS, the venture capital of Japanese shipping company Mitsui OSK Lines, to expand its execution offering, which remains its basic service in several markets.

“The investment was both financial and operational… On the operational side, Sendy and MOL are working together to unlock infrastructure and other operational hurdles to serve our customers. As mentioned earlier, in countries that have achieved product-market fit, Sendy is seeing incredible growth, partners like MOL are improving our ability to meet demand,” Edeimu said.

Sendy has so far raised $26.5m in disclosed funding from a number of investors including Toyota Tsusho, Atlantica Ventures, VestedWorld, Keppel Capital, Enza Capital, AAICA Investment Pte Ltd, Sunu Capital and Goodwill. Investments.