Nigeria (Commonwealth Union)_ Deepankar Rustagi, an Indian entrepreneur, is emerging as one of the most influential business leaders in Africa’s retail and supply chain sector. His company, Omnibiz, has created a rapidly expanding technology platform that enables millions of small retailers in some of Africa’s largest consumer markets to connect with suppliers, access financial services and run their businesses more efficiently. What began as a modest entrepreneurial venture has turned into a business valued at around $120 million, reflecting Rustagi’s vision and the vast opportunities across the African continent.
More than a decade ago, Rustagi moved from India to Africa with a belief that the region’s rapidly expanding economies held untapped potential. Armed with an initial investment of $50,000 and later supported by roughly $300,000 from family and friends, he began exploring different sectors and studying how local businesses operated. During his early years in Nigeria, Rustagi noticed a major problem that many international investors and entrepreneurs had overlooked. Despite the enormous size of the country’s informal retail economy, millions of small businesses had little or no digital presence. Many stores that served communities every day remained virtually invisible online.
A quick search on the internet showed the magnitude of the problem. If you searched for businesses in Lagos, one of Africa’s biggest commercial hubs, you often got incomplete information or irrelevant results. For Rustagi, it pointed to a bigger problem: a huge number of retailers were running their businesses without access to the digital tools and data they needed to grow their businesses. That led to the eventual launch of Omnibiz in 2019. The company was created to modernize traditional trade by bringing technology into the supply chain. Today, Omnibiz connects thousands of retailers across Nigeria, Ghana, and Ivory Coast with more than 200 consumer brands. Through a single platform, shop owners can place orders, access financial products, and coordinate deliveries more efficiently than ever before.
At the heart of Rustagi’s strategy is a belief that Africa’s biggest economic challenge is not a lack of opportunity but a lack of efficiency. Across many African markets, traditional retail and fast-moving consumer goods distribution remain highly fragmented. Businesses struggle with inventory management, logistics coordination and dependable data access. Such inefficiencies raise costs and constrain growth for retailers and manufacturers alike. According to Rustagi, resolving those operational problems could unlock significant economic value across the continent. He believes that more efficient trade networks can drive job creation, increase product availability, strengthen local brands and contribute to broader economic development.
Prior to establishing Omnibiz, Rustagi acquired valuable experience in software, consulting and consumer goods. He also worked with Tolaram Group, the company responsible for Nigeria’s popular Indomie noodle brand. In addition, he launched We Connect, a local search platform designed to improve the visibility of small businesses. The lessons learned from those ventures became the foundation for Omnibiz. They helped him understand the technology needs of businesses and the realities of retail distribution in African markets. One of the more distinctive things about Omnibiz is its asset-light business model. Unlike many logistics and supply chain companies, Omnibiz does not own large fleets of trucks, warehouses or delivery vehicles.
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Instead, it is about making existing infrastructure more efficient. Omnibiz is leveraging technology to coordinate logistics networks and utilize supply chain data, enabling companies to better utilize their existing assets instead of spending lots of money on physical assets. This concept has allowed the company to scale quickly with very little operating costs, and the growth has been remarkable. Omnibiz, largely self-funded in its early years and through the COVID-19 pandemic, closed a $3 million seed funding round in 2021. This was followed by about $5 million in pre-Series A funding and an additional $20 million in Series A investment.
The company has raised about $29 million so far, and its most recent valuation is about $120 million. Rustagi is not rushing to expand into every African market and is instead focusing on the health of Omnibiz’s existing markets. He wants to improve customer engagement and penetration within the markets they are already in, rather than rapid geographic expansion. Like many businesses that are operating in Africa, Omnibiz has faced a number of challenges, from inflation and rising fuel prices to global supply chain disruptions. But the company’s tech-led model has helped to shield it from direct exposure to many operational risks.
Looking ahead, Rustagi sees even bigger opportunities across Africa. While Nigeria, Ghana and Ivory Coast remain core markets, the company is also exploring expansion opportunities in countries such as Senegal, Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of Congo. He admits that there are challenges in navigating Africa’s diverse regulatory landscape, with each country having its own rules around payments, lending, trade and partnerships. But he remains confident about the continent’s future. Africa is one of the most promising growth stories for Rustagi. Deepankar Rustagi’s success with Omnibiz is a testament to how technology-driven solutions can transform traditional industries, create economic opportunities and help small businesses thrive. With the company’s continued expansion, Deepankar Rustagi is becoming a key player in Africa’s vibrant digital commerce and retail space.
