GiriToday, a new e-commerce platform, has been created to take the best of Africa to the world, quickly, efficiently and seamlessly.
Addressing a virtual press conference recently, the originators/co-founders of the platform, Wale Ayantoye and Ola Ajiboye, said, "GiriToday is a revolutionary B2B platform that bridges the gap between global businesses and skilled African artisans, transforming how companies source unique, high-quality products. Offering wholesale services tailored for bulk purchases, GiriToday provides an extensive catalog of authentic African products, such as arts, fabrics, specialty foods, and handcrafted furniture."
According to them, GiriToday, (www.giritoday.com) to be launched in February 2025, is set to revolutionize e-commerce across Africa by becoming the continent's largest online marketplace platform, connecting local sellers with international buyers. The platform offers a seamless, efficient, and cost-effective way for African businesses to reach a global audience, providing them with the tools to expand their market presence and grow revenue.
They said there are free listings for sellers: "GiriToday allows local sellers to list their products for free, reducing the financial barrier to entry and giving small businesses the opportunity to access a global marketplace."
Other advantages, they said, are FX Rate Settlement at Payout: The platform offers a unique advantage by settling payouts in local currencies at competitive exchange rates, ensuring sellers get the best value when transacting internationally.
It ensures global reach for local products: "Sellers can tap into international markets, creating new growth opportunities while buyers get access to authentic African products, directly from the source."
They said, "By eliminating intermediaries, GiriToday ensures competitive pricing, authenticity, and quality, creating a trusted marketplace for global buyers. This model not only allows businesses to tap into Africa's vibrant cultural heritage, but also empowers local artisans to showcase their craftsmanship on an international stage, fostering economic growth and opportunities.
"Through our commitment to sustainable trade relationships, GiriToday facilitates seamless bulk procurement from verified suppliers, enabling companies worldwide to source ethically and reliably while contributing to a brighter future for African entrepreneurship."
GiriToday's mission, they said, is to empower African businesses, create economic opportunities, and foster a direct trade link between Africa and the world. As we prepare for launch, we are seeking media partners who share our vision of supporting entrepreneurship and innovation on the continent.
Wale Ayantoye and Ola Ajiboye presented their credentials, background and experience, stating that they are well-equipped to manage the platform.
Ajiboye, who is currently based in Vancouver, Canada, said, "I am mostly in tech. I work as a software engineer, leading in so many roles."
He said, "My original background was in materials engineering, and then I studied something around sustainable energy. Then kind of pivot into tech in Tallinn, University of Technology, where I did some computer science stuff. Since then, I've walked across Estonia. "Later, I moved to Berlin, where I work at a company called Delivery Role. So over there, I was responsible for building what's called the other tracking. I led the team that kind of introduced it across Europe. So this company was around, we operated in 50 different countries currently. I mean, Amazon. So in Amazon, as you would maybe know, we have Amazon retail and Amazon Web Services. I have some experience working in the retail part of it, but currently I'm more focused on the Web Services part of it, especially with AI machine learning and things like this. So what I work on is in the infrastructure that powers most of the people who want to build AI and machine learning programmes on Amazon infrastructures.
So this has been my experience. "I am basically more in the tech side of things. But before then, also in Berlin, I did work in the BCG (Boosting Consulting Group), where I kind of developed most of my strategic leadership, apart from the tech side of things. "Yeah, so, and this brings to light why we are trying to build something with our experience combined; with Wale's experience in payment infrastructure, compliance and my experience, both in tech, which is mostly around works like consumer facing, and also in the development side of things, which is like productivity and machine learning. So, we are excited to bring this to the African continent, to leverage our experience and bring what the sellers on this continent can serve to the world."
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Ayantoye, who is in Europe, said, "In terms of experience, over the years, my focus and background at first is around compliance, regulatory compliance, financial fraud management, transaction monitoring. And over the years, I've had the privilege of working for companies like Square, which has rebranded as Block, and one of the main products that I had the privilege of helping develop and likewise, expand internationally is cash app, as people know it today."
He also said he had a chance of working for one of the big Ford e-commerce companies globally, which is called Etsy. "So over the years, my experience has been built around e-payments, and likewise, has been built around e-commerce, which explains why we built GiriToday."
He said, "Ola and I actually met when we're studying at the University of Technology in Estonia."
