When Amaka started her fashion business in 2023, she didn’t bother with a website. Instead, she built a ₦5 million monthly revenue stream entirely through WhatsApp. She’s not alone – a new segment of Nigeria’s retail economy operates almost exclusively through chat apps, creating what I call “The WhatsApp Economy.”

This isn’t just about digital adoption. It’s about something far more fascinating – how Nigerians are naturally blending technology with our traditional preference for personal, relationship-based commerce. In doing so, we’re not just using technology – we’re reshaping it to fit our cultural DNA.

The numbers tell a compelling story. According to a 2024 report by the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS), 67% of Nigerian online purchases now start with a chat conversation, compared to just 22% globally. Traditional e-commerce platforms, despite massive investments in infrastructure and marketing, are being outpaced by informal WhatsApp vendors in certain categories, particularly fashion, beauty, and personal care.

But why? The answer lies in what behavioural economists call “social commerce friction.” Traditional e-commerce follows a Western model: browse, add to cart, checkout. This model assumes that shopping is primarily a transactional experience. But in Nigerian culture, shopping has always been more than just a transaction – it’s a social interaction.

Think about your experience in a traditional market. You don’t just pick items and pay. You greet the seller, discuss the product, maybe ask about their family, negotiate the price, and build a relationship. WhatsApp commerce isn’t just technology adoption; it’s technology adaptation, moulding digital tools to fit our deep-rooted cultural preferences.

This adaptation is creating fascinating new business patterns. Take pricing dynamics, for instance. Traditional e-commerce platforms struggle with price negotiations, a fundamental aspect of Nigerian shopping culture. WhatsApp sellers, however, have turned this ‘limitation’ into an advantage. They use voice notes for negotiations, sharing behind-the-scenes glimpses of their sourcing process and building the kind of trust that algorithms can’t replicate.

Read also: The next frontier: How E-commerce is reshaping Nigeria’s informal economy

The implications are profound. First, it suggests that successful innovation in Nigeria doesn’t need to replace traditional behaviours – it needs to enhance them. Second, it reveals that our path to digital commerce might look very different from the rest of the world’s. While global e-commerce tries to eliminate human interaction, Nigerian digital commerce is finding ways to amplify it.

For established businesses, this presents both a challenge and an opportunity. The challenge is accepting that Nigerian consumers might never fully embrace the Western e-commerce model. The opportunity lies in understanding that our unique approach to digital commerce might be more advanced – more human – than the automated, impersonal systems dominant elsewhere.

Looking ahead, I expect to see this pattern expand beyond retail. We’re already seeing professional services, education, and even healthcare providers adapt to this more conversational, relationship-focused model of digital commerce. The future of Nigerian business might not be in apps or websites, but in the intimate, trust-building spaces of chat platforms.

This shift has implications beyond business. It suggests that as Nigeria continues its digital transformation, we won’t simply adopt global technologies – we’ll adapt them to fit our cultural context. In doing so, we might just create more effective, more human-centered models of digital commerce that the rest of the world could learn from.

The WhatsApp Economy isn’t just a trend; it’s a glimpse into how Nigerian ingenuity is reshaping digital commerce. By understanding and embracing this pattern, businesses can better position themselves for success in Africa’s largest consumer market.

As I watch this evolution unfold, one thing becomes clear, the future of Nigerian commerce won’t be defined by how well we adopt global technologies, but by how creatively we adapt them to fit our unique cultural context. In the end, that might be our greatest innovation of all.

Ojuade is a Commercial Strategy Leader who combines marketing psychology and consumer behaviour patterns across African markets to help professionals and brands to succeed in the African market.