Kenyan startup GoBEBA, which says it is reengineering Africa’s utility supply chain to help provide the infrastructure that can cope with the continent’s urban growth boom, plans to expand to four more cities in the country in next two years before expanding further into East and Central Africa.
It was founded in 2019 by Peter Ndiang’ui, former CEO of OLX, and Lesley Mbogo, former head of product at Amazon. GoBEBA is an online distributor of bulk renewable essentials.
The team has developed a robust technology stack to operate a distributed logistics network of micro-fulfillment nodes, which it plans to further automate through AI and robotics.
“We distribute massive, non-piped utilities like drinking water and cooking energy to African cities,” Ndiang’ui told Disrupt Africa.
The average consumer in emerging market cities replenishes daily essentials at a rate of more than 17 times per month.
“But this is in the midst of congested cities, chaotic public transport and low penetration of modern retail formats. A business model that leverages technology to provide better convenience without increasing the cost of goods while operating on sustainable economic units has been elusive,” said Ndiang’ui.
Until now, apparently.
“GoBEBA is leapfrogging 20th century retail development by moving beyond traditional modern brick and mortar retail formats in African cities to a more efficient technology-enabled distribution of everyday essentials,” Ndiang’ui said.
Using a network of small micro-fulfillment stores supported by an AI-enabled inventory management system, GoBEBA enables customers to order daily essentials and have them delivered to their doorstep in less than an hour.
Currently operating out of Nairobi, the startup plans to expand to four more Kenyan cities in the next two years, before moving to other cities in East and Central Africa.
“Africa is urbanizing rapidly. Due to the lack of piped infrastructure, the growing urban population is driving significant demand for pipeless utilities,” Ndiang’ui said.
“In 2023, Africa experienced the highest growth rate in bottled water demand. But the infrastructure for distributing non-piped utilities is broken. Customers are experiencing high levels of inconvenience, unpredictable availability and increasing security concerns. GoBEBA addresses these concerns.”
Self-funded in its first year of operation, the startup raised a small round of friends and family before attracting institutional investors such as Madica and Praxis, and grants from DevelopPPP, last year.