Bolt Market grocery delivery service debuts in Africa with Kenya launch

Leading e-mobility company, Bolt has finally introduced its grocery delivery service into the African market. Called Bolt Market, the service was launched in Kenya with the sim of making everyday shopping more convenient.

This development comes three years after Bolt Market was initially launched in its home market of Estonia. Speaking about the importance of the new service which will be available on the Bolt Food app, Bolt Food General Manager, Edgar Kitur said the grocery delivery vertical aims to better serve Kenya’s thriving grocery delivery space.

“With the launch of Bolt Market grocery delivery in Kenya, we aim to better serve a thriving food and grocery ecosystem that is a foundation for a city people love to live in,” Edgar Kitur said. 

Bolt Market faces stiff competition despite thriving Kenyan market

According to Kenya’s competition authority (CAK), the country is currently witnessing the emergence of a thriving online food and grocery delivery market. The CAK noted that in a survey of the market released earlier in the year, as of 2023, 9.3 per cent of Kenyans are shopping for food and groceries online, a figure that must have witnessed an uptick in 2024.

Indeed, the authority projected that the figure would rise to 16.7 per cent by 2027, putting the total number of Kenyans expected to depend on online grocery delivery services at 10.5 million users.

The study attributes this impressive growth to the convenience and efficiency of online grocery shopping platforms. It also attributed it to exciting offers like same-day and timed delivery options and buy-and-collect. These offers and services contribute to expanding consumer choice and enhancing their overall experience.

With such an impressive growth projection and an industry that is quickly maturing, it is not surprising that Bolt chose that market to launch its own Market. The company says it is tapping into the Kenyan market to offer customers a convenient way to access essentials. 

“The move is part of Bolt’s strategy to expand its services, grow its market share, and establish itself as a trusted platform for convenient, on-demand grocery delivery,” the company said.

However, the company will be expecting to face stiff competition from Glovo, a company, which, according to the CAK’s survey, has already established itself as the most preferred platform for food and grocery delivery. 

But the e-mobility company is used to strong competition. From its ride-hailing vertical to food delivery, the company constantly finds itself competing with other major players like Uber, inDrive etc for market share across all of its major markets. 

However, it hasn’t always competed favourably in the food delivery space. A little over a year ago, Bolt Food announced its exit from the Nigerian and South African markets, citing overwhelming competition. This is especially so in Nigeria where it was only able to attract a 5 per cent market share despite what it described as “heavy investments.”

See also: Bolt Food to exit Nigeria after managing only 5% of market share despite “heavy investments”

Thus the company would be expected to produce strategies to reflectively compete and grab a sizeable share of the Kenyan grocery market.

To position itself as a platform of choice, Bolt Market offers a selection of over 2,000 products which it says are “carefully curated products.” These products range from fresh produce from local sources to household essentials, beverages etc. The company also said its store teams have no interruptions and handle products with care, therefore making sure customers get the quality they would choose while saving their time

For starters, Bolt Market will offer free delivery to up to 3 kilometres and up to 80 per cent discount to celebrate its launch. 

How Bolt Market works

Bolt Market can be found on the Bolt Food app. There, customers can make grocery delivery orders from 8:00 am to 11:00 pm. They can also schedule their essentials and grocery delivery 24 hours in advance. 

Bolt Market will also operate within a 10-kilometre radius of its store in Kilimani. To order groceries from Bolt Market, customers can download the Bolt Food app, where they will be able to see the selection of products offered in the store. Before confirming the order, the app shows the price and estimated delivery time of the order. In order to pay for the order, the customer has to enter their bank card details into the app.

The Bolt Market service will initially be available in Nairobi and Mombasa.

Last month, Bolt Food introduced a feature which allows its delivery riders to access their earnings in two days, instead of the typical one-week cycle it used to be.