* Spending is no longer a luxury. Everyone — young and old — now watches every single Kwacha, asking: what am I buying; where is it cheapest; how long will it last?
* The platform; www.market-forummw.com has been built for Malawian consumers to make smarter buying decisions before they spend
By Duncan Mlanjira
Business marketing company, Market Forum Limited, has introduced a platform; www.market-forummw.com, which has been designed as real-time comparison of product prices in shops for consumers to make smarter buying decisions before they spend.
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The innovation was mooted in cognizance that since prices of commodities are fluctuating all the time, “spending for household livelihood is no longer a luxury as everyone — young and old — watches every single Kwacha, asking: ‘what am I buying? where is it cheapest? how long will it last?”.
Thus Market Forum comes in as “a central platform where stores and consumers can connect to compare prices, and make smarter choices in real time”, as said by Projects Manager, Henry Chimbeleko in an interview at the 36th International Trade Fair where the company is marketing its services at Chichiri Trade Fair Grounds in Blantyre.
Chimbeleko said they took note that consumers have now resorted to physically visiting various shops for prices of commodities and services, and the platform saves them from travel cost and time spent as a win-win situation.
“At the same time, shops can also benchmark their prices having also compared against what their competitors are offering for their products in order to offer competitive prices that can woo customers to themselves,” he said.
Henry Chimbeleko
According to the flier that Market Forum has prepared, www.market-forummw.com platform helps consumers to compare up-to-date price lists from major local stores across Malawi, that include Chipiku Plus, Shopwise, Game Stores, Sana Cash & Carry, SanaM, Shayyan, Savers Choice, City Supermarket, Santa Plaza and many more.
Commodities covered include grocery products of various foods, meat, dairy, beverages, drinks, cooking oils, liquor — along with household items for laundry, soaps, toiletries, cosmetics, kitchenware and more.
General goods include stationery, electrical & electronic appliances, steel products, furniture along with specialty, such as dog food, automobile products and others, also checking on quality and durability.
Other services and their prices that Market Forum displays include for mobile network providers, banking, legal, security, transport, airlines, courier, internet, academic institutions, tourism & travel, driving schools, medical services, fast foods, car hire, plant hire, among others.
“The mission is simple; www.market-forummw.com gives you transparency on price and quality so every Kwacha counts,” says Market Forum Ltd, which is registered under the Registrar of Business Names.
Its Mission statement is ‘to help Malawians fight the rising cost of living by giving consumers real-time access to price and quality data, so no one overpays in such a tough economy’; and the Vision is ‘to become Malawi’s most trusted platform where every consumer and business connects in real-time to ensure that no one overspends due to lack of information’.
Market Forum’s Core Values include:
* Transparency — by publishing real prices and unfiltered user reviews so that consumers can see the full picture;
* Accuracy — where price lists and products data are updated regularly and verified to keep decisions fact-based;
* Fairness — all stores get equal access to list and all consumers get equal access to compare;
* Consumer first — every feature is belt to protect the consumer’s kwacha in a tough economy;
* Independence — Market Forum does not sell products — its loyalty is to accurate information, not to any retailer.
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The emphasis on the importance of the platform to the nation includes:
* Economic efficiency — to help the consumers’ kwacha to go further during forex shortages and devaluation by eliminating overspending from poor information;
* Inflation protection — makes price hikes visible across the market so households can switch to affordable alternatives quickly;
* Fair competition — forces stores to compete on real value instead of location of brand alone, benefitting small and large retailers;
* Financial literacy — trains the citizenry to compare, budget, and assess durability before buying, building a smarter consumer culture;
* Data for policy — provides real time price data that government and economists can use to track cost of living and market trends;
* Supports MSMEs — gives small shops and local suppliers equal digital visibility without heavy advertising budgets; and
* Digital transformation — moves Malawi toward an open, data driven economy where information access is a public utility.
The platform’s home page
Since Market Forum needs revenue to keep prices updated, run servers, and support users, the stores to be featured will have to pay for visibility while keeping price search free for regular Malawians.
It also gives an advantage to suppliers of goods and services to help shops set up a full department for online sales whereby products will be delivered to consumers’ doorsteps by Market Forum itself; promotion and clearance sales of products and services; direct market access by showcase wholesale prices and bulk rates directly to retailers.
It also reaches out store managers and procurement officers to actively compare suppliers to cut costs; to see which products and services are searched most so that shops can align supply with real demand; win tenders and orders by providing better price, quality, or terms in a transparent market; and to introduce goods or services to the whole Malawian retail network without expensive sales teams.
It also helps to build business reputation as it collects reviews from stores and end users that verify shops’ reliability and product durability and to replace door-to-door sales visits with one updated price list that reaches all buyers.
It tracks price trends across categories to forecast demand and adjust production or imports and also acts as a benchmarking platform for prices with other competitors of suppliers of goods and services.
Going forward, Chimbeleko indicated that they will introduce in June a mobile application for online payments of goods and services along with aligning with courier service providers for customers to track transit progress of their goods that are being transported through courier companies.
Market Forum Limited is situated in Dossani House along Glyn Jones Road in Blantyre, whose Director is supported by an extensively seasoned team of experts with a wide range of professional backgrounds, ranging from marketing, computing, advertising, business administration and economics.
To the consumer, Market Forum’s promise is that “no Malawian should overspend because they lacked information. We give you real prices, real views, from real stores, updated fast so that your kwacha buys more always”.
“Our promise to stores/suppliers: We bring you customers who are ready to buy. We show your prices fairly, next to everyone else. No bias, no hidden fees, just equal access to demand. You compete on value, not advertising budget.”
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