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Global Social Benefit Incubator 2008
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Dynamic Distribution from the Factory Gates
AtoZ has a fantastic distribution system for delivering its products into Tanzanian homes through wholesalers and retailers. Most of these wholesalers purchase other items AtoZ manufactures such as plastic buckets, bottled water and T-shirts. Retailers are usually running tiny shops in villages much further away from the commercial centers where the wholesalers operate. They purchase items and strap them to the back of a bicycle to transport them back to their shops or sometimes (if they are making enough profit, they transport them via bus of train).
Bundling these other items for distribution through Tanzania’s wholesaler/retailer networks has made it very cost effective for AtoZ to get mosquito nets to remote areas of the country where people really need them. At times, AtoZ’s marketing team is identifying potential retailers and linking them to wholesalers in the nearest commercial center.
I accompanied one of AtoZ’s intrepid truck driver-salesman, Fred, as the nets left the factory in Arusha destined for homes in a region called Ifakara. Carrying hundreds of thousands of dollars in AtoZ’s merchandise, we encountered bumpy unpaved roads, bridges too narrow to fit a truck, and wild animals roaming free on the road in Mikumi park. Sometimes Fred is away from home for two weeks, but this time we were out just one week.
One of the most interesting deliveries we made was to a wholesaler which is selling only mosquito nets. Most wholesalers sell many other items such as flour, cooking oil, (and, of course, the most profitable) Pepsi/Coke, beer and cigarettes. I was amazed and proud to learn that this wholesaler was profitable enough to have created an entire wholesale and retail business aimed at preventing malaria. As a married team, Mr. and Mrs. Kimambo have run this business for over 12 years. Below I have shared a photo story for you to better understand their work:
Photo 1: AtoZ’s truck driver salesman, Fred, with his seven-ton-carrying delivery truck.
Photos 2: This is the market in Morogoro where Mr. & Mrs. Kimambo have both a wholesale business and a retail shop.
Photo 3: This is one of the tailors outside of the Kimambos’ shop doors reviewing her patterns before she starts working on the most exquisite sewing machine.
Photo 4: Outside of the Kimambos’ shop- a nicely painted wall with a big mosquito and a message about strategies for preventing mosquitoes with malaria.
Photo 5: Mr. & Mrs. Kimambo are assisting a customer who has come to purchase a net. She looked first at the polyester Safi-net (which has to be retreated with pesticide every six months and costs less than a dollar with her voucher). She then decided she wanted to purchase AtoZ’s Olyset net (which lasts for 5-6 years without any retreatment), but she was 20 cents short of being able to afford the better net. The Kimambos paid the extra 20 cents so that this pregnant mother could protect her family at night with a better net.
Photo 6: AtoZ’s team unloads nearly hundreds of nets for the Kimambos’ shop. Its hot and heavy work since Fred had to park the big truck far from the shop on the road.
Photo 7: This is the inside of the shop where Mr. Kimambo, Fred (AtoZ’s truck driver salesman) and Peter (AtoZ’s Marketing Manager), handle the billing and inventory check for our delivery.
Photo 8 & 9: A retailer named Peter came to the Kimambos’ shop to buy nets. Unlike most retailers, Peter is only traveling across town and he could only afford to purchase a few nets. His delivery ride will be much simpler than most retailers who sometimes travel for days in rough conditions.
Photo 10: After saying good bye to the Kimambos, we made our way to a town called Ifakara, where we discovered the most beautifully painted mural on the side of a medical clinic, which featured women tying up mosquito nets!
Bundling these other items for distribution through Tanzania’s wholesaler/retailer networks has made it very cost effective for AtoZ to get mosquito nets to remote areas of the country where people really need them. At times, AtoZ’s marketing team is identifying potential retailers and linking them to wholesalers in the nearest commercial center.
I accompanied one of AtoZ’s intrepid truck driver-salesman, Fred, as the nets left the factory in Arusha destined for homes in a region called Ifakara. Carrying hundreds of thousands of dollars in AtoZ’s merchandise, we encountered bumpy unpaved roads, bridges too narrow to fit a truck, and wild animals roaming free on the road in Mikumi park. Sometimes Fred is away from home for two weeks, but this time we were out just one week.
One of the most interesting deliveries we made was to a wholesaler which is selling only mosquito nets. Most wholesalers sell many other items such as flour, cooking oil, (and, of course, the most profitable) Pepsi/Coke, beer and cigarettes. I was amazed and proud to learn that this wholesaler was profitable enough to have created an entire wholesale and retail business aimed at preventing malaria. As a married team, Mr. and Mrs. Kimambo have run this business for over 12 years. Below I have shared a photo story for you to better understand their work:
Photo 1: AtoZ’s truck driver salesman, Fred, with his seven-ton-carrying delivery truck.
Photos 2: This is the market in Morogoro where Mr. & Mrs. Kimambo have both a wholesale business and a retail shop.
Photo 3: This is one of the tailors outside of the Kimambos’ shop doors reviewing her patterns before she starts working on the most exquisite sewing machine.
Photo 4: Outside of the Kimambos’ shop- a nicely painted wall with a big mosquito and a message about strategies for preventing mosquitoes with malaria.
Photo 5: Mr. & Mrs. Kimambo are assisting a customer who has come to purchase a net. She looked first at the polyester Safi-net (which has to be retreated with pesticide every six months and costs less than a dollar with her voucher). She then decided she wanted to purchase AtoZ’s Olyset net (which lasts for 5-6 years without any retreatment), but she was 20 cents short of being able to afford the better net. The Kimambos paid the extra 20 cents so that this pregnant mother could protect her family at night with a better net.
Photo 6: AtoZ’s team unloads nearly hundreds of nets for the Kimambos’ shop. Its hot and heavy work since Fred had to park the big truck far from the shop on the road.
Photo 7: This is the inside of the shop where Mr. Kimambo, Fred (AtoZ’s truck driver salesman) and Peter (AtoZ’s Marketing Manager), handle the billing and inventory check for our delivery.
Photo 8 & 9: A retailer named Peter came to the Kimambos’ shop to buy nets. Unlike most retailers, Peter is only traveling across town and he could only afford to purchase a few nets. His delivery ride will be much simpler than most retailers who sometimes travel for days in rough conditions.
Photo 10: After saying good bye to the Kimambos, we made our way to a town called Ifakara, where we discovered the most beautifully painted mural on the side of a medical clinic, which featured women tying up mosquito nets!
Maasai distributor for nets
hi i always read your blog with interest as i have been working on the development of a business incubator and venture philanthropy fund for Tanzania. do you have a distribution channel yet for your nets to the Maasai villages? I am working with a Maasai entrepreneur on a distribution company for rainwater collection systems, could be some synergy with nets...