Ghanaian startup KwikMo is a WhatsApp-based marketplace for local vendors, allowing sellers to list their products and access customers more easily.
Founded in November last year, KwikMo allows vendors to register and list their products entirely through WhatsApp – no app to download, no website to build.
Customers browse vendor catalogues, add items to a cart, and pay via mobile money, all within WhatsApp.
“We handle the storefront, payment processing, and order management so vendors can focus on their products,” Ernest Ofosu, KwikMo’s founder and CEO.
He took us through how he got KwikMo off the ground.
“I built the MVP in two days – WhatsApp Business API integration, multi-vendor architecture, Paystack MoMo payments, real-time order management — all on Cloudflare Workers,” Ofosu said.
“That same week, I showed up to the GH Sales Bazaar in Koforidua with no connections and no formal partnership. I walked in with my phone, pitched the organisers from Ripple Consult GH, and they said yes on the spot. Over that weekend, I went tent-to-tent registering vendors, fixing bugs live between conversations, and building features based on real-time feedback.”
By the end of the event, 19 vendors had live WhatsApp stores. According to Ofosu, the key is simplicity.
“Meet people where they already are. In Ghana, that’s WhatsApp and mobile money,” he said.
“That was the proof point – when you build for real needs with tools people already use, adoption takes care of itself.”
The gap KwikMo found is “pretty specific to Ghana”.
“Small vendors who want to sell online but can’t justify the cost or complexity of existing e-commerce tools. Jumia and Tonaton exist, but they’re designed for larger sellers or individual listings. They don’t serve the roadside provision store or the woman selling jollof from her kitchen,” said Ofosu.
“WhatsApp is the key. Over 15 million Ghanaians use it daily. Every vendor I’ve talked to already uses WhatsApp to communicate with customers. KwikMo just adds the infrastructure – product catalogues, ordering, and trusted payments – on top of what they already do.”
So far, the bootstrapped KwikMo has onboarded over 110 vendors and more than 200 products across Ghana, with a concentration in Koforidua, where Ofosu is based.
“That happened mostly through WhatsApp outreach — vendors telling other vendors. We haven’t done any paid marketing yet,” he said.
“On the partnerships side, we’re in early talks with Bolt Ghana about integrating delivery into KwikMo — so vendors could offer last-mile delivery through Bolt’s existing rider network. That would solve one of the biggest gaps for small vendors who don’t have their own logistics.”
Open to any vendor in Ghana, KwikMo already has vendors from Accra and other regions signing up.
“The model works anywhere in Ghana where WhatsApp and MoMo are dominant, which is basically everywhere. As we grow, we’ll build out city-specific vendor directories so customers can browse by location,” Ofosu said.
“Longer term, the same approach could work in other West African markets — Nigeria, Ivory Coast — but we want to get Ghana right first.”
The startup takes a five per cent commission on completed orders paid through mobile money.
