Which logistics app should you use in Nigeria?

Nigeria’s increasing online shopping trend can be attributed to the population of its internet users, which stood at 126 million in 2020. This increase in digital shopping spiked the demand for logistics services in Nigeria.

Statista reveal the country’s online shoppers to be 76.6 million in 2019, representing about 33% (one-third) of its population. According to Nikhil Goel, CEO of Gokada, the Nigerian e-commerce and the last-mile delivery market will worth over $20 billion in five years.

After the Lagos state government banned motorcycle operations, bike-hailing startups like Gokada and Max.ng morphed into logistics startups. They joined last-mile delivery players like Sendbox, GIGGO, and Kwik Delivery to offer B2C services to customers.

In this story, I will be comparing four logitech apps across some categories.

Methodology

I compared four logitech startups across four categories. The startups are; GIGGO, Gokada, Kwik Delivery, and Sendbox, and I compared them across;

• Cost
• Wait time
• Professionalism
• Ease of use

A good number of logistics services leverage phone calls and WhatsApp to fulfill orders for customers. However, I am focusing on startups whose business systems are fully digitized.

Meet the startups

GIGGO is the mobile app of the logistics company GIG Logistics. It launched in 2019 to provide users with seamless delivery options. Before GIGGO, GIG logistics offered delivery services to customers via a brick and mortar store. But with the new platform, users can request delivery services from the comfort of their homes. Chidi Ajaere leads the startup.

Gokada initially launched in 2017 as a bike-hailing startup under Fahim Saleh (late) and Deji Oduntan. However, after the Lagos state government banned motorcycles in early 2020, the startup morphed into an on-demand motorcycle delivery company. Nikhil Goel currently leads the company.

Kwik Delivery is an on-demand last-mile delivery startup that launched in 2019. The platform connects businesses and individuals with independent riders. Romain Poirot-Lellig leads the company.

Founded in 2017, Senbox is a logistics startup that offers delivery and fulfillment services to individuals and businesses. The startup is led by Emotu Balogun and olusegun Afolahan.

Peoples Verdict: polls, reviews, and ratings

About 200 people were asked to choose their most preferred option amongst GIGGO, Gokada, Kwik Delivery, and Sendbox and over 60% of them chose Gokada.

In the comment section, a Tweep with the handle Moyin A. said she will recommend Gokada because they're swift with delivery.

A further look at GIGGO, Gokada, Kwik Delivery, and Sendbox’s reviews and ratings via the Google Play store and the iOS App Store revealed how their customers felt about their services.

Of the four apps, Sendbox is the least downloaded, with over 10,000 downloads. But, the rest has 100,000 plus downloads on Google Play store.

According to the reviews, Gokada seems to have the highest reviews and ratings on Google Play store. The company is almost at a 4-star rating with over 2000 reviews. GIGGO follows closely with a 3.6-star rating and over 800 reviews.

Kwik Delivery has a higher star rating than GIGGO but less review. Its review is over 200. Sendbox has the lowest star rating and reviews, which stand at 2.5 and 69, respectively.

However, ratings and reviews can be doctored. So, to solidify my findings, I downloaded and used the services of each app.  Here are my key findings;

Ease of use

All the apps are easy to navigate, with their sections at a thumb reach. Kwik Delivery and Gokada’s information page seems identical. The only differentiation is Kwik Delivery’s logo at the top right side of the app.

Gokada and Kwik Delivery allows scheduling. If you are not ready for an immediate pickup, you can schedule a pickup time that works for you. Sendbox and GIGGO, on the other hand, do not offer such services but, Sendbox has a drop-off feature. The feature allows senders to drop off an item at any of Sendbox’s pre-saved hubs for delivery.

GIGGO offers multiple vehicle options. It allows senders to choose between a motorbike, car, minivan, and a truck. Kwik Delivery has these options, but they are not yet available. When I tapped on the four-wheelers on Kwik Delivery, coming soon popped up.

Gokada, Kwik Delivery, and Sendbox all have multiple payment options. Gokada accepts, card, wallet, and cash on pickup payments while Kwik Delivery accepts via Credits (wallet), cards, Paga, cash on pickup and delivery.

However, Sendbox allows you to pay via wallet, bank, or card. It does not deal with cash. GIGGO, on the other hand, accepts only wallet payments. While you can withdraw from your Sendbox wallet, you can’t do so with GIGGO. Whatever cash you have in it is no longer yours for the taking.

Another peeve for using Sendbox and GIGGO, asides from the no cash payment, is their too many processes. Sendbox requires weight, value, insurance, which is optional before a request can be processed, while GIGGO requires you to snap and upload the item, which takes lots of time to upload.

Wait time

To get the wait time of each app, I requested their services within proximity and to one address.

I scheduled a Gokada delivery for 11:00 am by 10:35 am, it got accepted by 10:41 am with pickup and delivery OTP sent to me via mail. The rider arrived for pickup by 10:59 am, and after confirmation of the OTP, he picked up and left by 11:05 am. He delivered the item to its designated destination by 11.34 am.

I requested for instant pickup on Kwik Delivery from the last destination to my address by 10:46 am. I received an email to confirm my request. The rider called to announce his acceptance by 11:46 am, arrived for pickup by 12:31 pm, and delivered by 2:19 pm.

I scheduled another delivery on GIGGO from my address to the former destination by noon and received the waybill number and delivery pin via text and in-app. The rider called by 12:26 pm and arrived for pickup by 2:00 pm. He delivered to the address by 3:09 pm.

On Sendbox, I requested delivery by 3:00 pm, but they only run same-day deliveries on items scheduled before noon. Due to this policy, Sendbox scheduled my pickup for 11 am-2 PM and delivery for 6 PM the next day. The rider called by 12:07 pm and picked up by 1:25 pm but, he didn’t deliver till 2-days later by 6:30 pm.

Cost

For same-day deliveries and requests within proximity, Gokada seemed more affordable than GIGGO and Kwik Delivery. It was also more affordable for deliveries to a farther distance.

Senbox, however, seemed fixed at an affordable rate. Its next-day delivery process and weight of the package might be the rationale behind its fixed price.

The table below explains more;

Professionalism

The Gokada rider was highly professional and soft-spoken. He only called to announce his arrival, confirmed his OTP, and left with the pickup. My recipient also confirmed that he was very professional in dealing with him. The GIGGO rider was also soft-spoken and very professional in his dealings with my recipient and me.

The Kwik Delivery rider wasn’t so professional, kept on calling for directions even though he had it on his map. The Sendbox rider was the least professional amongst the other riders. After his delivery, he asked for my WhatsApp information, and even though I refused, he wouldn’t stop calling me for it.

Conclusion

It is hard to decide which Logitech app offers the best delivery services. Although Gokada seems swift and affordable within proximity, its prices are exorbitant for deliveries to farther distances. Likewise GIGGO, and Kwik Delivery.

I don’t think it’s cost-effective for business owners and individuals to pay such exorbitant amounts for deliveries within the same state unless for locations at the outskirts of the state.

Sendbox might need to modify its delivery policy to accommodate same-day deliveries later than noon. Also, there is a need for the company to keep to a schedule or communicate if they had to reschedule.