Acquisition, Resignation, Merger? – Konga Is On A Roller Coaster Ride
2018 has shaped up to be a roller coaster journey for Konga. The Nigerian e-commerce giant has not only been acquired in the last 60-days, appointed its new CEO Nick Imudia and are now speculated to be merging with Yudala.
The acquisition was a logical step in the lifecycle of the company. To have serviced a market like Nigeria and become one of the major players in the face of Rocket Internet-backed Jumia, is a feat worthy of the milestones the company has attained. And perhaps therein lies the vested vision of Zinox CEO Leo-Stan Ekah.
This acquisition is the second play at the e-commerce space by Zinox after a failed attempt in 2013, when the company closed doors on its BuyRightAfrica company after 5-years of operation. Now it seems very likely that the Zinox CEO has every ambition to dominate the e-commerce market through this move.
A merger with Yudala would undoubtedly make Konga a dominant force in the market combining an online presence with physical store locations. It is noteworthy that the founder of Yudala is the son of Zinox CEO Leo Ekah. This merger speaks to more than the creation of e-commerce dynasty but also paves the way for stronger e-commerce platform capable not only of dominating Nigeria but expanding into the rest of Africa.
With all that being said, Zinox may have a completely different agenda altogether. Currently, a hardware-focused company, their acquisition of Konga allows them to diversify their portfolio and have a software offering on their books. This way, Ekah can with singular precision grow the various arms of the Konga family.
At the time of publishing this article, Konga had been reached for comment and we await a response that will give us the necessary insight into what is going on behind closed doors.
