City Distro is trying to solve one of Nigeria’s distribution problems

Getting everyday products from manufacturers to retailers in Nigeria can be a complicated process. A product can pass through several distributors before it gets to a shop, making it harder for manufacturers to know where their products are, how much retailers are selling and when they need more stock. For smaller consumer brands, this can make expanding into new markets even harder. City Distro, a Nigerian startup, is trying to make that process more direct. The company connects manufacturers with retailers and handles the distribution between them. It uses technology to track inventory, orders and deliveries, while its network of micro-hubs helps move products to retailers. 

City Distro currently operates across seven Nigerian hubs and says it plans to expand into other African markets. Nigeria gives a good picture of why the company is focusing on distribution. The country's FMCG market was estimated at $628 billion in 2025 and is expected to reach $1.047 trillion by 2033. But much of the retail market still depends on informal distribution networks, where several middlemen can sit between a manufacturer and a shop. That can push up costs and make it difficult to keep shelves stocked. For manufacturers, it also means less information about what is happening once products leave the factory.

City Distro's approach

Olamide Olabisi, City Distro's founder and CEO, has spent more than five years working in distribution. He said the problem is not necessarily a lack of retailers or products, but the lack of information connecting the two. “Distribution in this part of the world is inherently local and heavily last-mile driven,” Olabisi said. “What has been missing is supply-chain intelligence.” City Distro's platform gives manufacturers information about inventory and sales. Retailers can also order products through the system instead of relying entirely on traditional distribution channels. The company then handles delivery through its network. It currently distributes products including beverages, household goods and food staples. The focus is on emerging and challenger brands that may not have the distribution reach of larger consumer-goods companies.

City Distro wants to fix how FMCG brands reach Nigerian shops

City Distro says it has reached more than 1,000 retail stores in Nigeria over the past two years. Its retail customers include Prince Ebeano Supermarket, Foodco, Market Square, Pick n Pay and Jendol Supermarket. The company says it has distributed more than five million units of goods worth over $3 million. It also says orders are generally fulfilled within 24 to 48 hours. The company currently operates in Lagos, Abeokuta, Ibadan, Osogbo, Port Harcourt and Abuja. For a brand trying to expand beyond one city, getting products into retailers can be as important as producing them. A manufacturer can have demand for its product, but if it cannot keep retailers supplied, that demand does not translate into sales. City Distro is taking on that distribution work.

Credit could be added

The company is also looking at lending. City Distro wants to use retailers' sales information to provide inventory-backed credit. Retailers could potentially borrow based on their sales history and use the money to buy more stock. The same information could give manufacturers a clearer view of how their products are performing. It is an extension of the company's distribution business rather than a separate lending operation.

The next target is 10,000 stores

City Distro wants to increase its retailer network from more than 1,000 stores to over 10,000. It plans to bring more manufacturers onto the platform, increase its logistics capacity and add more features to its technology. The company also plans to expand outside Nigeria. That will bring its own complications. Distribution networks differ from one market to another, and the way retailers buy and receive goods can vary significantly between cities and countries. For now, City Distro is concentrating on Nigeria. It has already moved more than five million units of goods through its network. The next stage is to see whether it can increase that number while bringing more brands and retailers into the system. For City Distro, the business comes down to a fairly ordinary problem: getting the right products to the right shops without making the process more complicated than it needs to be.