Why Black Friday signals Nigeria’s e-commerce maturity – Temidayo Ojo

At the close of 2025, Temidayo Ojo, chief executive officer of Jumia Nigeria, reflected on a year-end shopping season that points to the growing maturity of the country’s e-commerce market.

According to Ojo, Black Friday is no longer a single, short-lived spike in activity; it has become a familiar, anticipated moment in the retail calendar, where consumers shop deliberately and with confidence.

Preliminary KPIs for the two months ended November 30, 2025, show strong year-on-year growth in both orders and Gross Merchandise Value (GMV), with GMV growth outpacing order growth. This indicates that customers are placing fuller, more considered baskets rather than shopping in fragmented transactions. Nigeria ranked among Jumia Group’s better-performing markets, with engagement remaining steady throughout the Black Friday period rather than spiking briefly and tapering off.

A key factor behind this performance is the growing familiarity of consumers with online shopping. Customers are increasingly leveraging platform features such as saved carts, brand stores, and price comparison tools to plan purchases in advance. This trend suggests that digital commerce is becoming embedded in everyday habits rather than being viewed as a one-off event.

Ojo also reinforced the role of Jumia’s jforce network in connecting digital commerce to local communities. “Our agents are critical to ensuring that customers across Nigeria, including secondary cities and smaller communities, have access to a variety, consistent pricing, and reliable delivery,” he said.

“During peak periods like Black Friday, jforce agents can respond faster, serve more customers efficiently, and build stronger local relationships. This isn’t just a distribution channel, it’s a pathway to sustainable income and inclusion.”

Reflecting on the overall performance, the CEO said that this year-end witnessed a steady engagement across categories, stronger consumer confidence, and partners benefiting from increased activity. It confirms that Nigeria’s e-commerce ecosystem is maturing, growing in a more structured and resilient way.

“As the December Holiday Sale continues, we expect these patterns of familiarity, trust, and participation to sustain momentum and drive both commerce and community impact across the country,” Ojo added.

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