New website launched to disrupt Kenya’s construction industry

WaziMart, an online marketplace for construction services and materials, has launched in Kenya in a bid to take advantage of the country’s booming construction industry.

The website allows consumers to access hundreds of hardware sellers who market their products and services online. According to Antony Maina, CEO, WaziMart, the online website is making it easier and faster for the technology savvy consumers who need quick services.

“The platform has been designed to give providers the space to showcase their products and services – which in turn gives customers the wide varieties and options available to them. We take it further by allowing avenues for providers to make professional cases or recommendations about their work and for buyers to also give their reviews,” reads a blog post posted on the WaziMart site.

“This facilitation creates the sort of transparency and ‘business’ atmosphere, as well as security and assurance, that has been brought by other sectors that have applied digital tools to solve business problems. We have seen it happen in many sectors – think of Uber and Taxify or Little cabs when it comes to transport. And that is the vision for Wazimart, we want to make the market open and help safeguard the business of the suppliers and service providers, while giving the buyer the options and transparency they need to make their decisions,” the post added.

Kenya’s Construction industry set for steady growth

A 2017 study by BMI Research, a company that analyses industry trends, showed that the local construction industry was set to grow by 8.7 per cent in the year and was to remain steady up until 2026 with an annual growth of 6.2 per cent – which will see Kenya outperforming all Sub-Saharan countries.

BMI pegged this growth to the Kenyan government’s huge spending on infrastructure development – with multi-billion dollar projects such as the standard gauge railway and the Lamu Port-South Sudan-Ethiopia-Transport (Lappset) corridor being key drivers of local economic growth.

WaziMart, has thus been launched at the right time to take advantage of this rise in Kenya’s construction industry.

“Our journey is long, but it’s begun. For suppliers and service providers, we welcome you to list your products and services so that customers can view them and make an order. As for buyers, we welcome them to view, compare and select what works best for them,” the post continued.