When Vinod Goel stepped into the role of Regional CEO – East Africa at Jumia in May 2024, he inherited a platform already known as the continent's pioneer in E-commerce, primed for sharper execution. A former Head of Fulfilment for the group, Goel brought a bias for operational rigour: he had previously doubled Jumia Express capacity in just 18 months and pioneered dark-store micro-fulfilment. 

“We exist to make online retail faster, cheaper and safer for every household—whether you’re in downtown Nairobi or deep in the Rift Valley,” he says.

What the organisation does – and why it matters

Jumia’s model in Kenya weaves three businesses into one: a third-party marketplace with 15,000 active vendors, an asset-light logistics network of more than 280 pick-up stations across the country, and a payments layer that supports mobile money, cards and buy-now-pay-later. 

With more than 10 million products listed at the most competitive prices, a 12,000 m2 fulfilment centre in the heart of Nairobi, a comprehensive network of transport and hubs, fully adapted to the local context, Jumia is positioned as the best e-commerce company to deliver thousands of items every day across the country. 

For the sellers, Jumia has become an indispensable expansion channel over time. The integrated Jumia stack lowers operating costs for MSMEs by up to 30 % versus setting up their own e-commerce sites and their offline stores, while giving consumers nationwide access to competitive pricing and authentic brands. 

Milestones under Goel’s leadership

Before taking over Kenya, Goel turned around Jumia Uganda in just 18 months with his strategy of tight unit economics, competitive prices and rural expansion. 

In May 2024, he was mandated to bring the same changes to Kenya. The turnaround playbook has since been working well in the region and has positioned Jumia East Africa as one of the most promising regions in Jumia Group's portfolio, both in terms of unit economics and growth.

The region’s flagship J-Force program is exponentially growing as it has doubled the commission-based agents in just 1 year and opened 500 new Order Points. 

The vendor base, new customers and repeat purchase by existing customers – all important metrics have been trending positively. 

KEPSA journey

Jumia became a corporate member of the Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) in 2018, formalising an already close public-private dialogue on digital commerce. That collaboration deepened during the pandemic: the 2020 Digital Commerce Program registered and trained thousands of distressed SMEs to sell online at zero start-up cost, cushioning jobs at a critical time. In 2021, the KEPSA E-commerce Booster extended the partnership, onboarding more sellers beyond Nairobi, while a March 2025 benchmarking tour saw 30 entrepreneurs walk Jumia’s warehouses to learn best practices first-hand. Each initiative has reinforced Jumia’s dual purpose: building Africa’s most trusted marketplace and uplifting MSMEs that power the wider economy. 

How KEPSA elevates business and what others can learn

KEPSA’s convening power has amplified Jumia’s voice in policy debates on digital tax, data protection and logistics infrastructure, ensuring that regulation fosters rather than stifles e-commerce innovation. Equally valuable is the visibility gained through speaking slots at KEPSA’s 20th anniversary and sector forums, which have positioned Jumia as the reference case for tech-enabled inclusion, converting goodwill into vendor sign-ups and strategic partnerships. Goel’s counsel to emerging founders echoes the lessons from those stages: “Start with the customer’s pain; master your unit economics early; and leverage alliances—no entrepreneur scales alone.” 

Looking ahead

With mobile-internet penetration in Kenya now above 40 % and cross-border rail corridors opening new fulfilment routes, Goel sees East Africa becoming Jumia’s proving ground for profitable growth. The next chapter focuses on competitive assortment in more categories (home, fashion, kids, music and sports), faster and cheaper deliveries across the country, integrated BNPL options, partnerships with major players and leveraging Gen AI to enhance the experience of all stakeholders. 

“Our story is ultimately Kenya’s story,” he says. “If we can digitise commerce at scale here, we can do it anywhere on the continent.” That vision—grounded in data, partnership and inclusive ambition—is why Jumia and KEPSA remain natural allies in shaping a more connected African marketplace.