Glovo has launched the Glovo Local, a new initiative to help small and medium-sized businesses in the retail and restaurant sectors to digitise their products and services.

Glovo Local is an all-in-one hub where local businesses can select digital solutions based on their needs through a single site to enable them enhance their business growth.

Glovo Local is the first such program in Africa, Europe, and Asia providing a raft of services and solutions for SMEs based on their needs and is available in all 25 markets in which Glovo operates.

Services available on Glovo Local include digital and operational solutions for their own channels and stores; dedicated tools to help them manage their operations at point of sale (from data insights to providing supply chain solutions) and grow their businesses with marketing and advertising abilities to help them reach new customers and improve visibility.

Glovo says all these are entrenched in an ecosystem of learning and development opportunities with dedicated tutorials and support within their digital journey.

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“Glovo aims to catalyse the online growth of small to medium businesses, as only 40% of merchants have digital presence in Kenya, currently Glovo has registered over 4,000 businesses on the Glovo App, we aim to rise this number in 2023,” said Glovo Kenya General Manager Caroline Mutuku.

She added, “As we continue to play a vital role in digitalization of businesses across the market, we understand the challenges faced by these businesses as a result of the Covid pandemic are therefore struggling to stay afloat.”

Mutuku says that once the business owners sign up on Glovo Local, the firm assists them to reach more customers hence accelerating their way to growth and sustainable profitability.

The launch of Glovo Local coincides with a research commissioned by Glovo in nine markets.

In Kenya particularly, it found that in understanding of the market and customers’ needs, 90 per cent was rated as the most critical factor to help businesses remain relevant.

Further, 79 per cent of businesses believe a technology partner will help them stay competitive as the cost of living continues soaring across the world, compared to the pre-pandemic era.

Similarly, 86 per cent of the businesses coveted in Kenya in the research indicated that they are changing their strategies more frequently to reach more customers.

The research also revealed that 62 per cent of the businesses are in survival mode even as 92 per cent remain optimistic they will achieve noteworthy growth in the next 12 months.

Kenya’s e-commerce penetration continues to grow significantly above the regional average, according to Statista, with revenue set to reach an annual average of 16.4 per cent by 2025.

Statista has revealed that with a revenue of US$1.1 billion and a share of 76.1 per cent, e-commerce generated the highest digital revenues in 2020.

The e-commerce growth in Kenya is being attributed to her recent adoption of a digital economy blueprint meant to further develop the ICT sector and e-commerce activity.

UNCTAD estimates the proportion of Kenyans aged 15 and above with a financial (mobile or bank) account enabling them to transact online was second only to Mauritius due to the high usage of the M-Pesa mobile money transfer platform.

Kenya government’s ambition for universal 4G coverage alongside accelerated smartphone ownership has further placed Kenya as one of the fastest growing e-commerce markets.