MAX commenced operations in Lagos in August 2015 and currently provides
EXPRESS deliveries to leading eCommerce companies, Corporations, online
merchants and everyday individuals within the Lagos Metropolis. MAX has
received recognition and awards from the World Economic Forum, the MasterCard
Foundation and the Harvard Kennedy School for its innovative operating model
and its focus on Inclusive Growth.
Founders, Adetayo
Bamiduro and Chinedu Azodoh, are both graduates of the prestigious
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US. They’ve brought their
cumulative 15 years’ experience in e-Commerce, Cloud Computing, Management Consulting and Investment Banking
to revolutionize the logistics space in Africa, starting with Nigeria. Like any
disruptive model, MAX takes a clean break from traditional courier operators by
leveraging Automated Dispatch Technology
and a crowdsourced network of what it calls ‘Delivery Champions’ to
provide accelerated deliveries within cities.
The approach
MAX is adapting for the Nigerian market is truly radical but not entirely new
as it has been proven in the
US, Europe and Asia.
One of the
Unique Selling Points of MAX is a
proprietary technology platform that connects these ‘Delivery Champions’ with
delivery requests in real-time, making it possible to pick-up and deliver
products to customers within 3 hours.
According to
Chinedu Azodoh “MAX will
help unlock Africa’s retail potential and accelerate inclusive economic growth”.
He stated that having studied the
unique challenges African merchants face in moving their goods and services
within and across cities, it was time to leave paid employment to address this
problem.
“We hope to
inspire a new generation of young African entrepreneurs who will spearhead
Africa’s economic renaissance.” says Adetayo Bamiduro. He went on to further
explain that the solution
MAX brings solves a deep local problem and with the opportunities ahead, MAX could
become a billion dollar company. “Logistics businesses are typically asset
heavy, with low barriers to entry and small operating margins. MAX will break
convention by operating a highly scalable CAPEX light model with fair margins”
he commented.
The founders say MAX doesn’t just serve online merchants. MAX also serve SMEs and
Corporates that need to deliver packages and parcels to their clients within
the city. Maintaining an in-house logistics unit is not economical for most
small companies, so MAX is perfect fit for them.
The founders were asked: “How do you
build an UBER type fulfilment model that allows goods to move around seamlessly
within an African context?”
Adetayo responds: “We need to avoid
replicating the Oil and Gas scenario where IOCs came to teach us how to mine
our own oil but we remain dependent on them 5 decades later. This time, we need
to take initiative. Of course there’s nothing wrong with bringing in expat
support, but we need to build internal capabilities and build our own solutions”.
