Exclusive Company Feature: We Catch up with Localnest

Africa Talks Business catches up with Localnest, we discovered that this unique platform is about to break into the brand space and revolutionise how we currently purchase local! The platform is dedicated to people who crave quick and easy access to local South African apparel brands.

As we know local designers and brands find it difficult to build up capital to create their own e-commerce stores and penetrate the market. This is how LocalNest can be a growing tool in the industry.

We speak to Daniel Trevethan, Founder of LocalNest- as he reveals to us the unique offering of the platform and its desired impact on the economy.

Daniel Trevethan, Founder of LocalNest

Describe Localnest for us.


“Localnest is a platform for people to quickly and easily discover local South African apparel brands
and purchase their products. Brands on Localnest get a notification when one of their items are sold
and then they proceed to ship off the product to the customer. When the order is complete the
proceeds from the sale get deposited automatically into the brand’s bank account. Localnest helps
customers find local brands and it allows local brands sell online affordably and efficiently.”

How is Localnest different from other online stores?

“There are a few exciting key features that sets Localnest apart from other online stores. Firstly,
everything on Localnest has free shipping. Whether you spent R100 on a cap or R3000 on jackets you
get free shipping. Secondly, we have very low commission structures, so brands are able to maximize
their profit when selling with us. Thirdly, we upload all the products for the brands that join us,
saving them a lot time and effort. Fourthly, we have a fair and even marketing rotation for our
brands so that each brand selling with us gets exposure and advertising for their brand, again with
no additional charge to them. Finally, we really care about our brands and their prosperity, we help
brands set up their store as professionally and effectively as possible.”

What role does Localnest play in the economy?


“In 2020 I ordered some items from a local brand but because they didn’t have a website and weren’t
selling online, I had to WhatsApp them going back and forth deciding on colours, sizes and discussing
what stock they had available. The process was just so inefficient that it became a passion of mine to
provide a way for local brands to sell their products more efficiently, without needing to pay huge
monthly website costs or spending weeks trying to build a website the doesn’t work as planned.
When the products that I had ordered arrived I was blown away by the quality, so I spent hours
searching on social media for more local brands that were also creating amazing products. It became
clear that there were so many brilliant brands that were only selling over Facebook and WhatsApp
which really limits their capacity for growth. Therefore, the role that Localnest plays in the economy
is providing an affordable and efficient way for local brands to sell products online. These brand
owners don’t need tech skills or lots of capital to pay monthly fees. Localnest allows people to
discover these unique and exciting apparel brands in the country without having to spend hours
digging through social media to try find them.”

What problems does Localnest encounter on a daily basis?


“The biggest challenge we face is getting local brands to see the benefit and vision of Localnest.
Unfortunately, in the past, people have tried to create similar platforms to Localnest that were sadly
unsuccessful. The brands we contact are sometimes concerned that joining Localnest will waste their
time, energy and money as previous platforms did. That is why we have gone for the no subscription
approach and we upload the products for the brands so that they have nothing to lose if their brand
doesn’t do as well as they hoped. Brands joining Localnest have nothing to lose.”

What objectives does Localnest want to accomplish this year?

“The journey this far has been one of personal growth, challenges and many ups and downs but God
is faithful and I am very grateful for the blessings Localnest has seen especially in the last few
months. Brands are starting to really get on board with Localnest and see the benefits that selling on
Localnest can bring. It would be amazing if that could continue to grow and word gets around that
Localnest is the best way to affordably and efficiently sell local apparel online. We also have seen
customers become more and more trusting of a relatively new platform and concept, so to see that
continue and develop into more and more sales would be an answer to prayer.”

Shop Localnest – https://www.localnest.co.za/shop-by-brand/

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