Africa: the next big place for fashion and retail

The world's fastest growing continent has enormous potential for retail growth. With increased access to technology, digitally-empowered consumers across Africa have been contributing to a growing e-commerce market that's been driving earnings and retail expansion in Rwanda, Nigeria, Namibia, Tanzania and Gabon, among other nations.

According to the recently released A.T Kearney African Retail Development Index, African retailers such as South Africa's Shoprite, which operates in more than 16 African countries, and Nakumatt, which is based in Kenya and has stores in neighbouring Uganda, Rwanda, and Tanzania, have done most of the expansion, but global retailers are moving in.

As such, DHL's expanded their network and targeted their strategy to ensure this retail growth goes swimmingly for retailers looking to get in on the ground.

"Supply chains in Africa are more challenging than many other markets in the world,” says Sumesh Rahavendra, Head of Marketing for DHL Express, Sub Saharan Africa.

“The key to success is understanding these challenges in order to offset the risks versus the opportunity which the continent offers. This knowledge will allow retailers to service markets with a supply chain that is agile enough to respond quickly to sudden or unexpected changes, flexible enough to customize products and efficient enough to protect margins."

After all, no matter how talented a designer may be, the real sign of success is getting the apparel and accessories out to the consumers – something DHL has spent years perfecting in over 220 countries around the world.