In the Nigerian tech scene, the loudest voices often get the most oxygen. But as the dust settles on a decade of eCommerce “disruptors,” a quieter, more systemic evolution is taking place.
3XG Shop is not interested in being the next “Amazon of Africa.” Instead, it wants to be the plumbing that makes African commerce actually work.
Under the leadership of founder Joshua Ogunde, the startup is tackling the industry’s “infrastructure problem” by building for the long term.
Most founders want to build the next viral app. Ogunde wants to build systems. 3XG Shop is positioning itself as an omnichannel platform that connects the dots between a merchant’s physical shop and their digital presence.
His philosophy focuses on growth as a consequence of usefulness, not marketing spend. The tech is a blend of integrating order management, fulfillment orchestration, and logistics into a single, modular architecture.
Joshua Ogunde represents a shift in the Nigerian founder archetype, moving away from “disruption” toward “stewardship.”
His approach is notably understated, prioritizing the stability of the merchants on his platform over vanity metrics.
“We’re not building for today’s version of commerce,” Ogunde says. “We’re building for what it needs to become.” This “systems-first” mindset is a direct response to the structural weaknesses that have seen better-funded competitors stumble.
He said that success for 3XG Shop isn’t just about GMV (Gross Merchandise Value); it’s about resilience.
“By focusing on logistics as a strategic layer and merchant tools as a necessity, 3XG Shop is creating a virtuous cycle, such as enabling merchants lead to better customer experiences; reliable logistics build consumer trust, and trust drives the organic, repeat usage that defines a ‘forever’ company,” he said.
As the “growth-at-all-costs” era fades, 3XG Shop’s discipline might just be the blueprint for the next generation of African retail tech.
