A friend had informed me that tickets to the Cake Art Fair had been purchased in the thousands throughout Nairobi. True to his word, a mostly younger crowd filled the venue at the Arboretum, eager to revel in the limitless supply of cakes. Maybe it was the thought of all those yummy goodies that caused so much commotion at the gate, with people pushing at each other to enter and enjoy the tasty treats. Sponsored by OLX, the fair encouraged a great deal of social interaction, along with a new era of marketing on Kenya’s favorite E-commerce website.
Elizabeth Ndambi, a Media and Partnership organizer from OLX had this to say, “We did a quick study and realized that 26% of Kenyan customers purchase baked goods, and we decided to align the OLX market with where the Kenyan economy was currently headed. So to get to be a part of that 26% would be great. To that effect, we recently launched an agriculture and food category on our platform.”
Bakers from all walks of life headed to the event to turn their God given talent into some cold hard cash. One look at the cupcakes would have left you salivating, just ask my friend who couldn’t seem to get enough of a particular cake made by Keril, a girl who started baking towards the beginning of last year out of keen interest-and had managed to attract several people to her stand, who were all obsessing over her delicacies. OLX seeks to support her and several other bakers throughout Kenya by exposing them to a larger number of potential customers, “everyone here who deals with cakes and pastries, even anyone in the crowd, if you’re in the pastry industry or an aspiring baker, we’d love to work with you. If you don’t have a bakery shop, or are in the process of establishing one, you can always post your ad for free on OLX.”
Just like any other seller on OLX, delivery services are discussed between the baker and the customer. This adds convenience to both parties, considering several bakers, even at the event, were based in their homes. Grace, a baker at the fair, claimed that she usually delivers her baked treats to interested customers at the CBD from her dwelling place in Athi River. The best part is that bakers get a 100% return from all the sales they make with the assistance of OLX. What’s not to love?
A little fun news for those who had come to enjoy some sugary goodness, anyone who had downloaded the OLX application or posted an ad on the website received a free cake while enjoying performances by Hart the Band, Flow Fani, and Yellow Light Machine, among other acts. Elizabeth continued to say “We wanted to get into the Cake Fair mood, and leave everyone with a message, which is; with OLX you can find meals, drinks, cakes and pastries. We want to be the one stop shop for everything you’re looking for.”
Article by Vanessa Wachera.