Emilie Shimbali

Sinte Mwilima recently launched Afrikart, an online marketplace or online retail service that assist local retailers in making their products more accessible in the digital space.

“When the pandemic began last year, I had this idea – I realised that many local retailers lack digital presence, so I decided to build an easy-to-use, low-cost platform with payment gateways and delivery companies integrated on the site,” she said.

The 20-year-old is a graduate of Business Management from Namibia University of Science and Technology (NUST), where she is pursuing her honours degree.

She explained that vendors from anywhere in Namibia can sign up on the platform (www.afrikart-na.com), where they will be able to sell their products for free, with a 10% commission. 

Payments can be made online, and deliveries can be tracked on her website, among other things. Products that could be sold include hair, clothes, stationery, furniture, and dry food.

“The market appears to be congested, and there is a great fear of new business entry, making it difficult for small businesses to advertise their products on a large scale. Aside from the fear of growing as a result of business competition, many business owners are still learning to improve their businesses through digital marketing,” Mwilima said.

The Afrikart business model is similar to that of AliExpress, which is based in China. Mwilima strongly advises vendors and any other businesses to join Afrikart and help put Namibia on the map.

“I will market your products to international customers as well. ”Aside from that, she ensures vendors that her platform is very safe, and only vendors with Security Sockets Layer certificates will be verified to use her platform in order to avoid scammers.

Mwilima accepts payments from 86 countries, and work with international shipping companies from the USA and the UK. 

- emilienashea9@gmail.com