The Kenyan arm of e-commerce platform Jumia has announced that Charles Ballard will assume the position of CEO. Charles has already succeeded Juan Seco, having started his tenure just last month.
Seco has departed from Jumia after serving for eight years, to join a pan-African player in the fintech sector, Mukuru, as Chief Growth Officer and MD East Africa.
Juan Seco was appointed as the new CEO of Jumia Kenya in July 2022, taking over from Betty Mwangi. Betty Mwangi had assumed the leadership of the commerce company in November 2021, succeeding Sam Chappatte, but she left the position just one year later. This means that the two immediate past CEOs have only been with the platform for less than one year each.
Charles Ballard has been with Jumia Kenya since 2019 when he joined as the Head of Performance and Planning.
In 2021, he was promoted to the position of Chief Operating Officer, where he oversaw the expansion and implementation of Jumia’s activities in Kenya.
In 2022, he was further elevated to the role of Senior Vice President – Commercials.
Prior to his tenure at Jumia, Charles worked as a Retail Consultant at Sagaci Research in Kenya from 2015 to 2019.
Before that, he served as Deputy CFO at ACTED, an international humanitarian NGO, from 2012 to 2015.
“I am excited to continue driving the e-commerce narrative in rural Kenya where more than 70% of the population lives. Access to Modern Retail is a challenge in these areas, which is a great opportunity to grow our online marketplace. E-commerce can bring better prices, more choices, and convenience to the rural Kenyans,” said Charles Ballard.
Kapu
A new e-commerce platform named Kapu was launched in late 2022 by former Jumia executives who sold the new shop as a platform that would cater to low-income earners.
As said, Kapu was founded by Jumia ex-employees.
After departing from their roles at Jumia Kenya, including former CEO Sam Chappatte, the group quickly developed their own version of an e-commerce platform.
Mr. Chappatte had said that Kapu would concentrate on supplying basic household products, particularly food items, that are frequently used by Kenyan families.
