OnePort 365 is a digital freight forwarding company established in Nigeria. It simplifies transferring cargo to, from, and within Africa.
OnePort 365’s CEO and creator, Hio Sola-Usidame, says they are currently working on an infrastructure for African international trade by utilizing a digital platform that allows for smooth freight forwarding and other value-added services; this solution will help retailers better manage their freight procedures. “We believe managing freight should be as easy as booking a flight or ordering a ride-hailing service, and we are building the operating system to make this possible.” The goal of OnePort 365 is to make freight management as easy as reserving a flight or requesting a ride.
Before OnePort 365 came along, Sola-Usidame ran a traditional freight management company, so he was very familiar with many of the problems that traders all over the continent face.
He added that it could take traders up to 14 days just to get rates from various freight services, and the process was heavily paper-based. “This presented a wide range of challenges for efficiency and productivity.”
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Africa is a large hub of marine trading
Reports say that 12% of the 811 million containers that go through ports around the world come from Africa. This makes Africa’s role in global maritime trade an increasingly important one. The newest numbers reveal that Africa’s clearing and forwarding sector is booming, with market size of US$4.2 billion and a forecast 12.5 per cent growth with new services developing.
However, Sola-Usidame says, “However, because of a wide range of problems, such as crowded ports, trouble finding good service providers, and complicated payment systems, this has led to higher costs, less efficiency, and a lot of missed opportunities for traders.”
The goal of OnePort365 is to address such problems and, as a result, expand its commercial operations. The company makes money by charging booking fees and offering several services that add value to the booking.
“The year 2020 marked the beginning of our business. Since then, bookings have increased by more than ten times on an annual basis, and year-on-year revenue has increased by more than eight hundred per cent, according to Sola-Usidame.
OnePort 365 makes trading easier and faster
Traders no longer have to wait up to two weeks before being able to evaluate the best rates offered by various service providers now that they have access to OnePort 365. They can explore comparative offers on the platform, book freight in less than 30 seconds, and benefit from rates that have already been pre-negotiated. Traders can also connect with companies that provide shipping and inland transportation, and the full process, from booking to payment, can be managed on a single platform.
Traders get GPS-enabled, real-time visibility of their shipments, and they can view all documents related to the shipment via the platform. This saves traders a lot of time and effort because they don’t have to go through the trouble of getting these documents from offices or shipping line centres.
Even though OnePort365 was based on an original idea, it was started because of the COVID-19 virus.
“It was necessary for merchants to investigate various alternatives for the management of their freight and goods that did not require them to be physically present. I remember that even during the global pandemic, when social isolation was the norm worldwide, people were still waiting outside shipping line centres to obtain bills of lading documentation for their freight so that they could authenticate their goods. According to Sola-Usidame, “we believe this should be the same in Africa as it is in other parts of the world because it has been done in other parts of the world.”
That is just what OnePort 365 is doing, and the company has already expanded its operations to the country of Ghana, with further expansion into new markets planned. A seed strengthened these intentions around a fundraising effort that took place earlier this year and raised US$5 million. Mobility 54, the venture capital arm of Toyota Tsusho and CFAO Group, led the effort.
“Intending to establish our presence in Kenya’s market, we are also investigating several business prospects in that country. Sola-Usidame says, “The status quo in several \African markets is quite similar, and we are passionate about using our solutions to help traders and other stakeholders across the continent find new opportunities.”
About OnePort 365
OnePort 365 is a freight forwarding platform developed in 2019 by a company of the same name. This platform enables traders to move their cargo quickly and easily while also providing complete transparency, visibility, and control. Also, this platform cuts down on the cost inefficiencies and time and effort inefficiencies that come from the way supply chain management has been done in the past.