Dakar-based startup, Niokobok (a leading e-commerce player in Senegal and one of the few viable e-commerce operations in Sub-Saharan Africa) secured a € 20,185 investment from the Dakar Network Angels, prompting a 3X matching investment from Catalytic Africa this year. This investment, which has been supported by Jokkolabs Senegal, will be instrumental in helping the startup adapt its tech to the social commerce space in Senegal.
This comes after the startup launched a social commerce platform in January 2023 that enables young women to resell businesses on social networks without capital, by leveraging the Niokobok catalog, inventory, tech, delivery, and payment systems and this investment will help boost operations of this platform.
“We are building our new social commerce channel on a robust e-commerce infrastructure and this additional funding will come a long way in ensuring this happens. With the funding from Catalytic Africa, we look forward to strengthening our technical operations and developing a new app that will boost our newly launched social channel. We are delighted to move to this new stage and look forward to impacting the startup ecosystem in the continent as these funds will be very instrumental in adapting our tech to the social commerce opportunity,” said Niokobok’s Founder, Laurent Liautaud.
With a GDP growth rate of 6.6% in 2016, Senegal is classified among the top three fastest-growing economies in Africa, and with a low inflation rate of only 1% in 2016, Senegal’s monetary policy mirrors the objectives of economic stability and growth.
“Co-investing with Dakar Network Angels through Catalytic Africa in Niokobok backs up the already-existing economic reforms, a favorable geographic position, and strong institutions with growing opportunities for investment in Senegal. It also signifies a strong commitment towards improving the startup ecosystem in the continent, thus promoting innovation and sustainable economic growth,” Fadilah Tchoumba, Fund Manager, Catalytic Africa.
With an annual revenue of 1 million dollars, Niokobok takes pride in its recently launched sales channel, which is already exceeding past sales.
Catch the complete interview with the startup’s founder right here!