Issue 01 — Our story
Commerce, the African way.
Shopa is a social-first storefront for African merchants. We help small businesses sell online without giving up the channels they already use — WhatsApp, Instagram, TikTok — or paying for tools designed for someone else’s market.
Why we exist
The shop comes first.
Across Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, and beyond, millions of small businesses run their entire operation in a chat thread. Orders come in by DM. Catalogs live in WhatsApp Status. Payments happen through screenshots of bank transfers.
It works — until it doesn’t. There’s no inventory tracking. No wallet. No way for a customer to find you again next month. No way to scale past a few orders a day without losing your mind.
The big global platforms aren’t the answer. They’re built for credit-card-first markets, English-language-only content, and shipping infrastructure that doesn’t exist here. They charge for features African merchants don’t need and ignore the ones they do.
So we built Shopa.
What we believe
Our principles.
Built for the seller.
Most commerce tools treat the merchant as the product. We treat the merchant as the customer. Every feature is judged by whether it helps a real African business owner sell more.
Honest economics.
No hidden fees. Clear monthly pricing, transparent commission, and a wallet you can withdraw from to a Nigerian bank account in under 24 hours.
Trust by default.
Real KYC. Real payment processing through Paystack. Real refund and dispute processes. Trust isn't a feature — it's the floor.
Made to feel local.
WhatsApp, Instagram, TikTok — the channels you already use. Naira-first pricing. Lagos-aware delivery. We're not a copy of an American platform stretched to fit.
By the numbers
How it works for you.
3
subscription tiers, no free freebies
Naira-first
every price, every payout
24h
typical withdrawal to your bank
5–10%
commission, depending on plan
In progress
What we’re building next.
Shopa is early. Today you can open a storefront, list products, take payments through Paystack, manage orders, run promotions, and withdraw to your bank. Merchants on higher plans get bulk uploads, abandoned-cart recovery, custom branding, and team accounts.
On the way: a native iOS and Android app, custom domain support, a public API for the developer-curious among you, multi-store management for merchants running more than one brand, and richer analytics. We ship things when they work, not when they’re announced.
If there’s something you wish Shopa did, tell us. The Ideas Board in your dashboard goes straight to the team.
“Software made for African merchants, by people who understand the market.”
— what we’re trying to be
Get involved
Open a store, or just say hi.
Whether you’re ready to sell or just curious about what we’re building, we’d love to hear from you.