Category Archives: FMCG

Book Review: Stuffed and Starved by Raj Patel

By Niti Bhan | Published: July 5, 2019

Although the book I’ll be reviewing today was first published in the year 2007, I only came upon it this year in a used bookstore. Raj Patel’s Stuffed and Starved lays bare the innards of the world’s food distribution systems and the market dominance of the megacorps in the business. The Guardian’s original review captures […]

Also posted in Africa, ASEAN, Base of the Pyramid, Biashara Economics, Book Reviews, Economy, Ecosystem, Emerging Futures, Indigenous & Traditional, Informal & Flexible, Migrant worker, Perspective, Retail in Africa, rural, Rural Economy, South Asia, Sub Saharan Africa | Tagged book review, food systems, raj patel, stuffed and starved | Leave a comment

Why the Potential of the African Consumer Market Cannot be Considered in Isolation from the Informal Economy

By Niti Bhan | Published: December 17, 2018

Top flight management consulting firms like McKinsey, BCG, Deloitte, PwC et al have been taking a good long look at the emergent African Consumer Market for a number of years now. McKinsey, in fact, has just released a book on the theme, authored by their leading Africa experts. All of them acknowledge the existence of […]

Also posted in Africa, African Consumer Market, Analysis, Assumption filter, Biashara Economics, Commerce en ligne (e-commerce), Consommateurs, Consumer Behaviour, Distribution, Ecosystem, Emerging Markets, Innovation Planning, Marchés africains, Marketing, Mobile platform, Perspective, Prepaid Economy & Informal Sector, Report Review, Retail in Africa, Strategy, Sub Saharan Africa | Tagged African Consumer Market, biashara economics, biashara economy, informal economy, marketing strategy, prepaid economy | Leave a comment

Africa’s Delivery On Demand Apps are Transforming the Informal Economy

By Niti Bhan | Published: December 10, 2018

When women in rural Rwanda can buy sanitary napkins and contraceptives, on demand, simply by pushing a few buttons on their phones, you know the digital informal economy is here to stay. And, its not just imported apps and social enterprises pushing this digital commercial activity. The “uberization” of the African informal economy is well […]

Also posted in Africa, African Consumer Market, Biashara Economics, Business Models, Commerce en ligne (e-commerce), Consommateurs, Consumer Behaviour, Distribution, Ecosystem, Emerging Futures, Flexibility, Frameworks, Informal & Flexible, Innovation Planning, Mama Biashara, Marchés africains, Marketing, Mobile platform, Perspective, Platforms, Prepaid Economy & Informal Sector, Retail in Africa, Strategy, Sub Saharan Africa, Technology, Value | Tagged app economy, apps, informal economy, mobile apps, prepaid economy, uberization of african informal economy | Leave a comment

Will the global trade war lead to more sustainable (and local) consumer products?

By Niti Bhan | Published: September 20, 2018

In a study titled “Competing In the Age of Multi-Localism”, ATKearney said mounting trade tariffs and other pressures have upended the global strategy – think mass-market production and achieving economies of scale – that has been a business hallmark since the early 1990s. “It’s no longer a viable strategy for many companies,” the study said. […]

Also posted in Business Models, China, Consumer Behaviour, Design, Distribution, Ecosystem, Emerging Markets, global, India, Innovation Planning, Marketing, Perspective, Platforms, Strategy | Tagged design for emerging markets | Leave a comment

Ecodesign, Ecolabels and the Environment: How Europe is redesigning our footprint on earth

By Niti Bhan | Published: June 4, 2018

What do chopped fresh green beans have in common with high definition flat screen TV’s? And how does this relate to design? In Europe, they’re both considered consumer products whose journey from raw material to shopwindow requires energy to process—emitting greenhouse gases that can have an adverse impact on the environment—and are considered to possess […]

Also posted in Articles on Design and Innovation, Business Models, Consumer Behaviour, Culture, Design, global, Innovation Planning, Marketing, Perspective, Research, Strategy, Technology | Tagged design, environment, europe, sustainability, value chain | Leave a comment

Why does the prepaid model work so well and what are the lessons for business model innovation?

By Niti Bhan | Published: March 1, 2018

Increasingly, employment is becoming ad hoc and flexible. The gig economy and the informal sector share a common characteristic of incomes which are irregular and unpredictable, unlike the timely wages characteristic of formal employment. Both budgeting and planning thus become a challenge when there’s no predictable paycheck to rely on. Expenses are managed against cash […]

Also posted in African Consumer Market, Analysis, Base of the Pyramid, Biashara Economics, Business Models, Consumer Behaviour, Design, Emerging Markets, Flexibility, Frameworks, Income, Informal & Flexible, Innovation Planning, Marketing, Mobile platform, Perspective, Platforms, Prepaid Economy & Informal Sector, Research, Retail in Africa, Rural Economy, Strategy | Tagged business model innovation, flexibility, lessons from prepaid, negotiability, opportunity, reciprocity, seasonality | Leave a comment

Lessons for development from the demand driven investment strategies of the informal sector

By Niti Bhan | Published: February 19, 2018

This shopkeeper in Laare, Kenya provided me with deep insight on how investments in expensive inventory are managed in a heavily cash based economy. He runs a consumer electronics store stocking everything from solar panels, music systems, spare parts and batteries, through to mobile phones and accessories. His purchasing decisions are based on visible consumer […]

Also posted in Analysis, Assumption filter, Base of the Pyramid, Biashara Economics, Business Models, Consumer Behaviour, Distribution, Ecosystem, Emerging Markets, Innovation Planning, Marchés africains, Marketing, Perspective, Prepaid Economy & Informal Sector, Strategy, User research | Tagged consumer demand, demand driven development strategy, inventory, investment in trade goods, local market, making markets work | Leave a comment

A Unique Path to Development Seen for the Informal Economy

By Niti Bhan | Published: January 30, 2018

Just recently I stumbled over this slim book < 60 pages that analyzed existing data sources in order to frame an answer to the research question they posed: How did the informal economy―markets and the private sector―develop in the absence of legal and administrative frameworks to support it? Some of the most intriguing insights extracted […]

Also posted in Assumption filter, Base of the Pyramid, Biashara Economics, Business Models, Cashless transactions, China, Economy, Ecosystem, Emerging Markets, Flexibility, Frugality, global, Income, Informal & Flexible, Prepaid Economy & Informal Sector, Report Review, Research, rural, Rural Economy, Savings, Scarcity, Strategy, Systems, UCSD, Value | Tagged asia, informal economy, informal trade, private sector, public planning, transformation, transition, value | Leave a comment

Household energy consumption behavioural study in East Africa: Cooking (Part 2 of 3)

By Niti Bhan | Published: January 28, 2018

The following is extracted from a six month study during 2012 on household energy consumption behaviour in rural Kenya and Rwanda among the lower income demographic, that led to an understanding of some of barriers hampering the sales of client’s solar products in this market. This 2nd part will focus on fuel usage and consumption […]

Also posted in Africa, African Consumer Market, Base of the Pyramid, Biashara Economics, Business Models, Consumer Behaviour, Culture, Design, Expenses, Frugality, Indigenous & Traditional, Informal & Flexible, jua kali, Kenya, Mama Biashara, Marchés africains, Marketing, Perspective, Prepaid Economy & Informal Sector, rural, Rural Economy, Scarcity, Strategy, Sub Saharan Africa, Systems, User research | Tagged africa, charcoal, consumer behaviour, cooking, cooking fuel, cooking in rural Africa, firewood, household consumer behaviour, kerosene, solar, user insights | 1 Response

Some Highlights from Reviewing the African Consumer Market 2014-2017

By Niti Bhan | Published: January 26, 2018

Recently I was reminded of the cover story in the Africapitalist magazine published back in 2014 on the theme of the true size of the African Consumer market, that is, the hidden and untapped purchasing power embedded in the continent’s vast informal and unrecorded sector. Today I’ll start by reviewing some of the consumer trends, […]

Also posted in Africa, African Consumer Market, Afrique francophone, Airtime, Biashara Economics, Business Models, Commerce en ligne (e-commerce), Consommateurs, Consumer Behaviour, Emerging Markets, Marchés africains, Marketing, Mobile platform, Perspective, Research, Retail in Africa, Strategy, Sub Saharan Africa | Tagged African Consumer Market, opportunity, trends | Leave a comment