Avo by Nedbank is bringing digital malls to the South African market with Sandton City being the first to launch.
An immersive ‘mall’ experience, Avo digital shopping lets users enjoy the convenience of making a range of purchases remotely and collecting their products from a secure location.
“We aspire to enable our app users to do life differently,” says Vishal Maharaj, founding member of Avo. “The concept of a digital mall is broad and includes everything from gaming, clothing and groceries to tech, gadgets and home décor. Our insights show that people across Africa are willing to travel to shop, with Sandton City being a preferred destination.
“We have onboarded more than 30 stores to date, and more are on the way, ensuring they are live on the platform for customers to start shopping. Avo is also open to any individual or business that would like to use the platform whether or not they are Nedbank clients,” he adds.
Avo’s Click and Collect lounge feature lets users shop items from multiple stores in Sandton City, pay for goods on the app, and gives them the choice between home delivery or collection from the Avo lounge lockers at Sandton City.
The Avo ‘super app’ was first launched in June 2020, offering Nedbank customers and broader South African consumers access to online shopping, essential services and financial products on a single platform.
Using a platform ecosystem, Nedbank configured a digital solution in the form of Avo to deliver comprehensive value propositions and enhanced personally tailored experiences that customers need in a changing world. The bank realised an opportunity and a responsibility to do far more for customers by moving their service offering beyond traditional banking and financial services.
Nedbank’s move to become a ‘digital-first’ financial services provider led to the successful launch of the Nedbank API_Marketplace, a first-in-Africa platform aligned to open banking standards. It creates opportunities to disrupt the traditional approach to banking and financial services while laying the groundwork for a truly client-centred, market-orientated and innovation-driven future in the digital world.
The term ‘super app’ refers to a multitude of apps aggregated into one, so customers and businesses can manage their daily lives through one app.
“Over the last few months, we have seen huge growth on our digital platform, and we are fast approaching the milestone of 200 000 downloads,” says Maharaj.
Avo is also attracting a significant number of merchants. “For individual users, we have introduced a ‘get-it-on-credit’ option, underpinned by Nedbank Personal Loans,” he adds.