{"id":15660,"date":"2024-08-06T16:04:01","date_gmt":"2024-08-06T12:04:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/?p=15660"},"modified":"2025-12-15T12:20:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T08:20:08","slug":"case-study-zwanayo-com-congos-fast-growing-marketplace-built-with-cs-cart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/case-study-zwanayo-com-congos-fast-growing-marketplace-built-with-cs-cart\/","title":{"rendered":"Case Study: Zwanayo.com\u2013Congo\u2019s Fast-Growing Marketplace Built with CS-Cart"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Built on CS-Cart, <a href=\"https:\/\/zwanayo.com\/\">Zwanayo.com<\/a> is a marketplace to improve the online service in Congo. Its mission is to enhance collaboration between local retailers and entrepreneurs for increased customer loyalty and higher sales.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Why_is_Zwanayo_so_cool_Thats_why\"><\/span><strong>Why is Zwanayo so cool? That&#8217;s why<\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-1 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\">\ud83d\ude80 2 years from idea<br \/>to launch<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><strong>\ud83d\udce6 <\/strong>4,000 products<br \/>in stock<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\">\ud83d\ude9a 10,000 orders<br \/>delivered<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Yoan Malong, the project founder, came up with the idea of taking the overall image of the African online marketplace usage experience to the next level. He believes it will stimulate the growth of online shopping thanks to a simplified ordering and delivering approach.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"max-width: 600px; margin: 50px auto; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; background-color: #f9f9f9; padding: 20px; border-radius: 5px; box-shadow: 0 2px 5px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);\">\n  <div style=\"border-left: 4px solid #ccc; padding-left: 20px; color: #555; font-style: italic;\">\n    \u201cI&#8217;ve seen different marketplaces working in the UK and USA. I&#8217;ve seen what they can do and how convenient they are. I strongly wanted to bring that user-friendliness to local users and see if this kind of business might work well right here in Congo.\nMy goal was to build an e-commerce platform that would regroup and centralize the already existing marketplace ecosystem.\u201d\n  <\/div>\n  <div style=\"margin-top: 10px; text-align: right; color: #777;\">\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"background-color: #ffffe0; padding: 20px 20px; text-align: center; border-radius: 2px; border: 2px solid #ffcc99;\">\n    <p style=\"font-size: 18px;\"><b>Bonus from Yoan Malong:<\/b><br \/>Webinar on the most important metrics<br \/>every marketplace owner should care about:\n\n<\/p><p align=\"center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/promo.cs-cart.com\/metrics-june\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><button class=\"custom-button\">WATCH WEBINAR<\/button><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"From_Idea_to_Launch\"><\/span>From Idea to Launch<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Launching a full-scale marketplace in Congo was a different experience compared to what Yoan has seen in European countries. On the one hand, the idea was to bring all big vendor names to one place and manage them offering a diverse selection of high-quality products online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On the other hand, it was necessary to ensure the platform\u2019s ease of use along with order and deliver simplicity. This was especially important, as people in Congo rarely use high-end smartphones, tablets, or laptops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>CS-Cart turned out to be an optimal solution. It comes with a set of built-in features including multi-vendor functionality, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/split-payments\/\" title=\"\">split payments<\/a>, and user groups as a part of the integrated <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/marketplace-management-software\" title=\"\">marketplace management system<\/a>. Although Yoan has some experience in coding and working with WordPress, he eventually opted for CS-Cart as a simpler, faster, and easier-to-manage and customize solution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"max-width: 600px; margin: 50px auto; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; background-color: #f9f9f9; padding: 20px; border-radius: 5px; box-shadow: 0 2px 5px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);\">\n  <div style=\"border-left: 4px solid #ccc; padding-left: 20px; color: #555; font-style: italic;\">\n   \u201cCongolese use mobile devices. But those are mainly low-quality smartphones or tablets with not enough capacity to quickly launch high-performing apps or services. So, we needed a platform to meet specific demands of the market and the people comparing comprehension of the e-commerce platform right here in Congo.\u201d\n  <\/div>\n  <div style=\"margin-top: 10px; text-align: right; color: #777;\">\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"298\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/ezgif-6-7cb12b86ad.gif?resize=600%2C298&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Zwanayo, fast-growing marketplace in Congo\" class=\"wp-image-15661\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><em>Zwanayo, fast-growing marketplace in Congo<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Development_and_Customization\"><\/span>Development and Customization<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The project went live in May 2022. It took Yoan 2 years from the idea of creating a marketplace to the initial launch. Today, the platform has over 4,000 products on stock and around 10,000 products delivered by 8 different vendors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Yoan opted for<a href=\"https:\/\/marketplace.cs-cart.com\/unitheme2.html\"> UniTheme2<\/a> as the foundation for the marketplace design. However, it was customized to meet the specific needs of the local audience. While the African market differs from countries like Europe or the US, it comes with niche-specific challenges. So, the marketplace required a piece of customization.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"max-width: 600px; margin: 50px auto; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; background-color: #f9f9f9; padding: 20px; border-radius: 5px; box-shadow: 0 2px 5px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);\">\n  <div style=\"border-left: 4px solid #ccc; padding-left: 20px; color: #555; font-style: italic;\">\n   \u201cOne thing that we wanted to do was to make it easier for local vendors and entrepreneurs to understand the platform and use it.\nThere is a unified and globalized standard in European countries or North America. But in Africa, we have different challenges. The online payment infrastructure needs improvement. Some users do not even have banking accounts. Besides, most Congolese use low-quality gadgets. Most of them have gone out-of-date.\nWe wanted to launch a marketplace that would meet specific needs of Congolese users.\u201d\n  <\/div>\n  <div style=\"margin-top: 10px; text-align: right; color: #777;\">\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"600\" height=\"287\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/ezgif-6-ead9c20b25.gif?resize=600%2C287&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Simple checkout process\" class=\"wp-image-15662\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><em>Simple checkout process<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Expansion_and_Challenges\"><\/span>Expansion and Challenges<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Yoan believes the platform will grow into the biggest marketplace in Congo. What\u2019s more, he plans to expand the borders and establish strong online representation in other African countries with no online shopping facilities. Eventually, Zwanayo.com might grow into the largest marketplace across Central Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The main challenge was to find an all-in-one solution that would combine enough marketplace management tools in one place. Apart from WordPress which required extra plugins and lots of coding for customization, Yoan opted for CS-Cart as a unified solution with integration ease, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/multivendor\" title=\"\">multi-vendor<\/a> support, and customization features.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"max-width: 600px; margin: 50px auto; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; background-color: #f9f9f9; padding: 20px; border-radius: 5px; box-shadow: 0 2px 5px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);\">\n  <div style=\"border-left: 4px solid #ccc; padding-left: 20px; color: #555; font-style: italic;\">\n  \u201cCS-Cart is very easy to implement. It lets you do what you want to do. I can organize my marketplace however I want to make it run better and smoother. It is good for beginners as well. Who knows, maybe it is high time we became the biggest Marketplace in Central Africa.\u201d\n  <\/div>\n  <div style=\"margin-top: 10px; text-align: right; color: #777;\">\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Key_Features_and_Support\"><\/span>Key Features and Support<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In Congo, the online banking system is not as developed as in Europe. What\u2019s more, the majority of locals do not have banking accounts, which makes it difficult for them to shop online.&nbsp; So, Yoan required a fast-operating platform that allows integration of third-party services like online payment platforms and e-wallets.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Another requirement was to ensure multi-vendor support to manage listing, rates, and other assets in one place, while also delivering a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/7-best-practices-to-ensure-a-seamless-checkout-experience\/\" title=\"\">seamless checkout process<\/a> for users. Although the overall speed could be improved at some point, the platform meets all primary goals in terms of marketplace functionality. It offers enough integration opportunities and flexibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"max-width: 600px; margin: 50px auto; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; background-color: #f9f9f9; padding: 20px; border-radius: 5px; box-shadow: 0 2px 5px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);\">\n  <div style=\"border-left: 4px solid #ccc; padding-left: 20px; color: #555; font-style: italic;\">\n \u201cDigital payments are a pain, as the majority of Congolese do not have banking accounts. So, we teamed up with Airtel and MTN, which are the biggest telecommunication companies here, and integrated their mobile payment solution letting customers pay directly using their phones.\nThe integration process was simple. The support team was very helpful. They quickly informed me of any case. In fact, at some point, I realized I ran out of questions.\nAs for improvements, I would appreciate it if they notified me of updates, like, \u201cHey, did you know that we have got the new admin panel?\u201d\n  <\/div>\n  <div style=\"margin-top: 10px; text-align: right; color: #777;\">\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"background-color: #ffffe0; padding: 5px 20px; text-align: left; border-radius: 2px; border: 2px solid #ffcc99;\">\n    <p>\u2139\ufe0f Keep up with all CS-Cart &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/cs-cart-releases\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">updates<\/a>. Learn more about new features, browse through the release history not to miss improved functionality, latest software versions, and smaller fixes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Achievements_and_Future_Plans\"><\/span>Achievements and Future Plans<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The marketplace is extending. It attracts more vendors with high-quality products at a reasonable price. Right now, it has around 4,000 products on stock and about 10,000 items regularly delivered by 8 different vendors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As for future plans, Yoan believes he can cover more locations offering an advanced shopping experience to a wider audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"max-width: 600px; margin: 50px auto; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; background-color: #f9f9f9; padding: 20px; border-radius: 5px; box-shadow: 0 2px 5px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);\">\n  <div style=\"border-left: 4px solid #ccc; padding-left: 20px; color: #555; font-style: italic;\">\n \u201cRight now, we are based in one city. Our goal is to move to the capital and eventually become the #1 eCommerce platform in Central Africa. We wish more people in Africa could order high-quality products and get them delivered to the front door. While being represented yet in only one city. Delivery to other locations takes time. So, we need to expand\u201d.\n  <\/div>\n  <div style=\"margin-top: 10px; text-align: right; color: #777;\">\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Advice_for_New_Entrepreneurs\"><\/span>Advice for New Entrepreneurs<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Yoan recommends focusing on launching the platform first instead of thinking about vendors. This is where CS-Cart can be a foundation of the future business. Considering your target audience and the experience your marketplace will deliver is also crucial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"max-width: 600px; margin: 50px auto; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; background-color: #f9f9f9; padding: 20px; border-radius: 5px; box-shadow: 0 2px 5px rgba(0,0,0,0.1);\">\n  <div style=\"border-left: 4px solid #ccc; padding-left: 20px; color: #555; font-style: italic;\">\n\u201cI think beginners should focus first on making the platform and people that are going to use it. I think that&#8217;s the best advice. If you think about vendors too much, you will get discouraged after a while. Make the first move. With each new step, it becomes easier and easier and you just adapt your strategy as you go. Beginners should be ready for lots of hard work as well.\u201d\n  <\/div>\n  <div style=\"margin-top: 10px; text-align: right; color: #777;\">\n  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:40px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Conclusion\"><\/span>Conclusion<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The story behind Zwanayo.com shows how CS-Cart can help create a customized marketplace that meets business expectations. With a focus on the target audience and their needs, business owners can quickly launch a project with enough potential to become the most influential eCommerce platform in the region.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p align=\"center\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/contact\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><button class=\"custom-button\">CONTACT US<\/button><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Built on CS-Cart, Zwanayo.com is a marketplace to improve the online service in Congo. Its mission is to enhance collaboration<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":85322,"featured_media":15730,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,80],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/Case-Zwanayo-2\u04451-1.png?fit=2400%2C1320&ssl=1","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15660"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/85322"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15660"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15660\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21004,"href":"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15660\/revisions\/21004"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15730"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15660"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15660"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.cs-cart.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15660"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}