Category Archives: Urban

Price cuts in the prepaid economy

Posted on April 4, 2012 by

Sunil Bharti Mittal recently referred to a pattern of consumer behaviour that came as a surprise to Airtel Africa, leading to a rethink of their near future pricing strategy for this market. The Indian telecom company told participants at the … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, Airtime, Assumption filter, Bottom of the Pyramid, Business Models, Buyer Behaviour, Expenses, Income, Kenya, Mobile platform, Urban, User research

African Traders in Guangzhou, China: Routes, Profits, and Reasons

Posted on January 15, 2012 by

While digging around for information after my recent flight where I was offered an upclose and personal look at increasing informal trade between Africa and China, I came across this research paper by Yang Yang from the Chinese University of … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, Assumption filter, Business Models, Buyer Behaviour, Cashless transactions, China, Culture, Economy, global, Informal & Flexible, Literature review, Migrant worker, Urban | Tagged , , , ,

Welcome to Bazaaristan: global informal economy being recognized

Posted on November 6, 2011 by

Across the globe, 1.8 billion people — a quarter of the world’s population — work off the books each day. They are paid in cash for the goods they sell and the services they provide, and due to their ubiquity, … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, ASEAN, Bottom of the Pyramid, Business Models, Culture, Economy, global, India, Informal & Flexible, Kenya, Literature review, Philipines, South Africa, South Asia, Sub Saharan Africa, Urban, User research, Value | Tagged , ,

Kenya’s Kadogo Economy

Posted on May 26, 2011 by

Charcoal seller Margaret Nyambura, a widowed mother of four, used Sh100 we had given her to shop for food and household goods that would last her family three days. Her priority was cooking oil and maize flour, which cost her … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, Airtime, Bottom of the Pyramid, Business Models, Buyer Behaviour, Economy, Informal & Flexible, Kenya, Mobile platform, Sub Saharan Africa, Urban, User research | Tagged , , , , , , , , , ,

Women Together: Incentivising Savings

Posted on February 21, 2010 by

Mahila Milan means “women together” and provides a decentralised vehicle for the empowerment of women via leadership roles and advocacy alongside its pivotal daily savings collection. Continue reading →

Posted in Banking, Collection, India, Informal & Flexible, Loans, Savings, Urban | Tagged , , , , , ,

Prepaid pricing plans and the financially savvy BoP buyer: A discussion

Posted on January 5, 2010 by

Rural grocery shop, South Africa January 2008 While putting together my post on demanding BoP customers today, I came across this snippet from an article titled "Getting to know the sophisticated prepaid user" from The Philippines (one of the field … Continue reading →

Posted in Africa, Airtime, ASEAN, Bottom of the Pyramid, Business Models, Buyer Behaviour, Expenses, Income, India, Mobile platform, Philipines, Rural, Strategy, Sub Saharan Africa, Urban, User research

Introducing Meena Kadri

Posted on January 1, 2010 by

New Zealand born Meena Kadri has an undergraduate degree in Anthropology and a Masters in Design. She has taught at design schools globally, notably for two years at the National Institute of Design in India. She currently resides in New … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Design, India, South Asia, Urban, User research

Savings Circles

Posted on December 27, 2009 by

Bishi schemes are a kind of Rotating Savings and Credit Association (ROSCA): informal and voluntary local savings clubs which has a long history in India and elsewhere in the developing world. Continue reading →

Posted in India, Informal & Flexible, Savings, Urban | Tagged , , , ,

Banking on Trust

Posted on December 12, 2009 by

Following up on the Reserve Bank of India announcement to allow small shops and phone kiosks, etc to handle basic services on behalf of banks – I directed questions around potential receptivity amongst Dharavi residents. Continue reading →

Posted in Banking, Bottom of the Pyramid, India, Informal & Flexible, Loans, Urban | Tagged , , , ,

Island Life

Posted on December 9, 2009 by

Shankar Jadhar’s friends describe him as an “all-rounder”. The 40 year old Dharavi resident is married with 5 children and lives close to the traffic island which he has laid unofficial claim to, from where he conducts his business. Continue reading →

Posted in India, Informal & Flexible, Urban, User research | Tagged , , , , ,