Amechi Ogbonna and Chinenye Anuforo
Mr. Jeremy Hodara, Co-founder of Jumia Group yesterday announced Mr. Massimiliano Spalazzi, as EVP Marketplace/Chief Executive Officer, Jumia Nigeria.
Massi, as the new CEO is fondly called, is taking over from Mrs. Juliet Anammah, who has piloted affairs of Jumia Nigeria since early 2016 after she was appointed for the position in late 2015.
Anammah has been elevated to Chairwoman, Jumia Nigeria and Head of Institutional Affairs, Jumia Group.
Speaking at a media parley in Lagos, Hodara said the vision of the company this year is to accelerate the path of its profitability with its payment platform.
He said the company would also capitalise on its infrastructure network to boost revenue from services for third-party sellers on its online marketplace.
According to Jumia Group Co-founder, “2019 was an important year for Jumia. Jumia Nigeria has always been at the fore front of Jumia Group. Jumia Nigeria has been a place where we groom people for higher and more responsibilities for the company across Africa.
“As a company that is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, our responsibilities towards each country we operate have increased. We are a big company now, and as a result of that, our responsibilities to the countries and communities are increasing and changing.
“Because of these responsibilities and changes, I have asked Mrs. Juliet Anammah to come with me to become the head of institutional affairs for Jumia Africa. Her responsibilities will include visiting countries, meeting governments and institutions (local and international) in ensuring that Jumia has the impact it should have.
“She is therefore now the Chairwoman of Jumia Nigeria. It is good news for Jumia. I am very proud because she is the only woman in that capacity in Jumia.
“For Massi, he was one of the Executives and he started his career in Nigeria about four years ago. He is to take the leadership of Jumia Nigeria as its Chief Executive Officer. He understands Nigerian market, he knows our partners, consumers.”
Hodara said the company hopes to build on the successes it recorded last year. He said Jumia had a lot of traction in consumer usage and would continue to boost consumers’ confidence. In his words: “The better side of ecommerce is its frequency and repetition of transactions. Therefore, we are going to focus on the usage of Jumia. As a Group, We want to accelerate on our profitability. Our sellers need to get good profits while our consumers deserve better offers and prices.