OmniRetail, a B2B e-commerce platform, has launched OmniOne, a digital ecosystem designed to transform Nigeria's traditional trade sector. This new platform provides fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) manufacturers with enhanced distribution visibility and integrated financial services. Built upon the company's established OmniBiz engine, OmniOne leverages an existing network to digitize the complex supply chain.
Addressing Fragmentation in Traditional Trade
Nigeria's FMCG market is experiencing significant growth, yet its distribution network remains fragmented and reliant on manual processes. According to NielsenIQ, traditional trade constituted 98% of the retail landscape in 2023, highlighting its critical importance. This reliance on outdated methods often leads to operational inefficiencies, payment delays, and missed sales opportunities for stakeholders.
Manufacturers traditionally depend on a complex web of distributors where communication and transactions are often disconnected. Orders placed via phone or in-person visits and payments split across multiple channels create significant friction in the supply chain. OmniRetail's platform addresses these challenges by unifying these disparate processes into a single, streamlined system for its users.
The OmniOne Ecosystem
OmniOne functions as a digital layer built on the existing OmniBiz commerce engine, which continues to handle order fulfillment. It provides manufacturers with a single interface for real-time visibility into their entire distribution network, from warehouses to retail shelves. This allows for a consolidated view of business performance, including customer analytics, order values, and sell-through rates.
For distributors, the platform simplifies daily operations by enabling them to manage ledgers, check stock availability, and place orders seamlessly. According to CEO Deepankar Rustagi, OmniBiz earned the trust and built the network that makes OmniOne possible. He noted that stakeholders can now plug into this established infrastructure to accelerate their own growth and scale faster.
Integrating Financial Services
A core component of OmniOne is its embedded financial services offering, developed through partnerships with over 14 financial institutions. This integration provides distributors and retailers with direct access to essential financial tools within their daily trade activities. Available services include working capital support, digital payment systems, and various deposit options to improve liquidity across the channel.
The platform modernizes credit access by using transactional and behavioral data to determine creditworthiness instead of relying on traditional collateral. Purchase history, order frequency, and repayment patterns are analyzed to provide financing based on actual business performance. This data-driven approach helps reduce working capital pressure and stockouts for distributors and retailers in the network.
Leveraging Data for Scalable Growth
The launch of OmniOne follows OmniRetail’s $20 million Series A funding round, underscoring its significant growth trajectory. The company has visibility into over 500,000 FMCG orders monthly, with a total value of approximately $182 million. This vast amount of data is now harnessed by OmniOne to provide actionable insights for its manufacturing partners.
Rustagi explained that the platform connects four elements that typically operate in isolation: goods, payments, credit, and data visibility. This holistic connection empowers manufacturers to make more informed decisions regarding inventory, credit, and overall market strategy. It ultimately helps reduce manual follow-ups and unlocks value across the entire supply chain for all participants.
With OmniOne, OmniRetail is positioning itself as a key enabler of digital transformation within West Africa's traditional trade sector. The company plans to enhance the platform by deepening its AI capabilities to strengthen the link between commerce, finance, and data. This focus on creating a comprehensive operating layer aims to foster a more efficient and data-driven ecosystem for all stakeholders.