You can’t take this market!

•Traditional traders and online marketers’ silent war of control

There seems to be a marketing war going on between online vendors and market traders over pricing of goods. Yetunde Ajanaku examines the rising tension among these regular and irregular market forces and the way forward.

IN Nigeria’s markets and rapidly growing space, an invisible war continues to shape how goods are sold and bought. On one side of this battle are traditional market traders, many of whom have spent years behind their stalls, attracting customers through bargaining and personal relationships. On the other side are online vendors, who rely on technology, branding, and convenience to reach buyers far beyond the market’s borders.

The friction comes from pricing. Market traders complain that online vendors buy goods from them and resell at what they consider “outrageous prices,” thereby making profit in the process. In their defence, online vendors counter that prices other their products reflect extra costs from delivery fees, internet data to marketing and packaging, adding that convenience and service are part of the value they provide.

This tension is not new in Nigerian commerce. Long before the introduction of smartphones, traders would buy goods in one market and sell in another for a profit. But the internet has amplified visibility and competition, turning what used to be a quiet rivalry into a public debate on fairness.

Sharing her thought about the issue, Mrs Temiloluwa Ebere, who straddles both markets and the digital space, said: “I can’t say online vendors really affect my business because I sell online too.”

She believes packaging and presentation play a huge role in online sales.

“People don’t appreciate what they don’t see. Online vendors will give their products the best packaging, and their social media posts quality editing and all.

“Before I started selling online, I used to patronise a lot of vendors that I didn’t know, and they delivered. I thought that if they could do it, so could I and when I realised how much some online vendors were making, I started giving my own goods packaging. Selling inside the market and online is completely different.

“Online might be stressful most times because I have to respond to a lot of people but it does worth it,” Ebere said.

She also recalled that even before the internet, traders had a form of “price war” in the market space.

“This has been like that since the days of our mothers. People will always haggle the price of products in the market, but prices of products posted by most online vendors are fixed. Customers just have to decide if they want the convenience or the bargain,” she added.

For her, the key difference is the customer experience. A buyer in a physical market can touch, smell, and test products before buying but online vending rely entirely on visual appeal and trust.

Mrs Joy Arasomwan, who also sells mainly online, disclosed that “My prices are determined by shipping fees to Nigeria and the exchange rate. Sometimes, the rate changes overnight and you have to adjust your prices to avoid losses.”

When faced with the allegation that online vendors make “too much profit,” Mrs Arasomwan disagreed, saying the goal for her and many online vendors is fast turnover and not overpricing.

“That [allegation] is not true, because I sell cheaper than most store owners. Although there are some online vendors who sell higher too, but in my case, my main goal is fast turnover, not overpricing,” she said.

She also disclosed that the fact that some market traders now sell online has never affected her business because her customers usually compare prices before buying from her, adding that the web-based vendors, like her, spend a lot on data to be online and do a lot of promotion and discounts for their business before they can get customers.

“Before anyone thinks they (online vendors) make too much profit, they should think of how much they spend on necessary things to attract customers.

“We all need to work more on visibility and reach. If you’re not visible to customers, you’re invisible in this business,” Mrs Arasomwan added.

The value difference

For shoppers like Blessing Ajayi, who works in a commercial bank in Lagos, both worlds serve different needs.

“I buy fresh food items from the market because I can check them myself. But I buy clothes, hair products, and even gadgets online, mostly because I’m too busy to go around looking for them,” she said.

Ajayi admitted that she sometimes pays more online, but the time saved and the convenience of home delivery make such payment worthwhile.

“For me, it’s about value. If I’m getting the exact thing I want without stress, I don’t mind paying a little extra. But if I feel the price is too high compared to the market, I’ll just go there myself,” she said.

An economist and small business consultant, Dr. Olufemi Adebayo, explained that the clash between market traders and online vendors is as much about perception as it is about pricing.

“In the traditional market, bargaining is part of the culture. Customers expect a starting price to be high so they can negotiate down. Online, the price is fixed and people interpret that as expensive, even when it’s not,” he said.

According to Dr. Adebayo, the solution lies in understanding that both business models serve different consumer segments.

He explained further: “A working mother in Abuja might happily pay extra to have her groceries delivered, while a retiree in Ibadan prefers the market, where they can chat with the sellers and touch the goods. If traders and vendors focus on their own strengths, both can thrive.”

While many see online and offline as competing spaces, some entrepreneurs are blending the two. Sunday Tribune reports that mobile apps now connect market traders directly to customers, allowing people to order fresh produce at market prices but with the convenience of delivery.

The rise of e-commerce platforms like Jumia, Konga, Jiji and even Instagram shops has created a new kind of marketplace where branding, speed, and reliability can matter as much as the product itself.

In places like Lagos Island and Port Harcourt, younger traders are setting up Instagram pages for their stalls, posting daily updates on stock and prices. This way, they keep their traditional customer base while attracting online buyers.

This conflict between these two worlds isn’t just about numbers, it’s about the future of Nigerian trade. For some customers, buying online saves time, transport costs, and stress. For others, the market remains king, offering lower prices and the thrill of bargaining. This dual reality forces traders and vendors to adapt or risk losing relevance.

Instead of seeing online vendors as middlemen, some of the respondents that Sunday Tribune spoke with urged market traders to incorporate online vending into their businesses because it helps to cut costs and keep customer relationship direct.

A market vendor, Mrs Omolara Olupona, who complained that most online vendors make double of what they buy from the market to resell to their own customers, adding that such practices affect market traders as many people now tend to believe that those in the market sell fake or sub-standard products because their prices are usually lower compared to what they see in the online marketplace.

The overcome this, Mrs Olupona explained that they now need more time to convince many customers.

“We’re not making as much as people think. When market traders start selling online, there’s more competition there and sometimes they sell cheaper. But I try to keep my customers by being consistent and by giving them good service so they trust me and keep buying from me,” she said while explaining her strategy.

‘What I ordered vs what I got’

While all appears rosy, it isn’t for the customers who got something different from what they ordered online. This has become a growing trend with many Nigerians taking to social media to share sordid details of online vending gone wrong.

One such victim of this unpalatable experience is Mrs Bimpe Oluwole, who explained that the risk of buying online despite the outrageous prices is that vendors send over wrong items that are different from what was initially ordered.

“I once ordered a cloth online from Lagos for my children and I sent size and colours that I preferred to the vendors. To my surprise, when the order arrived, it was completely different from what I saw on her page. When I lodged my complaint, she didn’t give me any tangible reason why she did that. I guess she just posts things on her page to attract customers.

“Ever since then, I have decided never to buy things online again. I will rather to the market myself and see what I want to buy,” she explained.

Another shop-goer, who also patronise online vendors, Miss Olayinka, told Sunday Tribune that she prefers physically going to the market to get her needs because some online vendors make errors in product selection and delivery.

“I usually source most of my products directly from my customer’s shop as it allows me to maintain quality and meet their preferences.

“Most times, people deliver a different thing from the one you ordered online and you get disappointed. So, it is better to buy from market traders,” she explained.

To forestall this, another bank worker, Miss Janet, told Sunday Tribune that she carries out a diligent search on the online vendors before patronising them. This scrutiny helps to avoid fraudulent and unsatisfactory transaction and experience.

“I cannot remember the last time I was at the market because I don’t have the time. My work takes most of my time and buying things online has been the best for me,” Janet, who had been on the negative end of such unsatisfactory transaction, said.

“Before I purchase anything online, I would have done my research on the vendors and checked their pages to see if they are genuine,” she added.

According to her, she cares less about the prices of the items sold online as long as she can get them conveniently at home when she needs them.

As the battle lingers on, market traders may need to embrace technology without abandoning their roots. Online vendors may have to acknowledge the market’s role as their supply backbone. But achieving this balance will take open-mindedness on both sides as Nigeria’s trade ecosystem is big enough for everyone if competition is tempered with fairness. In the end, the customer decides who wins.

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