How to Start Selling on WhatsApp in Africa (Step-by-Step Guide)
WhatsApp has over 100 million active users in Nigeria alone. Learn how to turn your WhatsApp contacts into a thriving online store — for free.
If you run a small business in Africa, WhatsApp is already your sales channel. You're probably sending product photos, prices, and payment details to customers one by one. It works — but it doesn't scale.
A WhatsApp storefront fixes this by giving you a clean, shareable link where customers can browse all your products, add to cart, and send you a pre-filled order message. No calls. No back-and-forth DMs.
Step 1: Set up your store in 5 minutes
Sign up on Gulacart, enter your WhatsApp number, and choose a slug (e.g. gulacart.com/s/mamas-kitchen). That's your store URL — share it everywhere.
Step 2: Upload your first products
Add products with photos, prices, and short descriptions. High-quality product photos sell. Use natural light, clean backgrounds. Your phone camera is enough.
Step 3: Share your store link
Put your store link in your WhatsApp bio, Instagram bio, Facebook page, and any group chats where your customers hang out.
Step 4: Handle your first order
When a customer taps "Order via WhatsApp", they get a pre-filled message listing everything in their cart. You receive it as a normal WhatsApp message. Confirm, collect payment via M-Pesa or bank transfer, and deliver.
Step 5: Level up as you grow
Once you're handling more than 10 orders a week, consider upgrading to the Plus plan for an order dashboard, analytics, and no Gulacart branding on your store.
The bottom line
Millions of African sellers run entire businesses on WhatsApp. The difference between those who struggle and those who scale often comes down to having a proper catalogue. Start free, grow from there.