Latest news with #AfriGIS
Zawya
2 days ago
- Business
- Zawya
The missed opportunity of not embracing geospatial science in trade area analysis
In the information-rich age we live in, answers to location-based questions have never been more available – and crucial – to a business's success. Yet, many of South Africa's franchises and retailers continue to rely on gut feel or high-level aggregated sales data to guide their decisions on where to open stores and how to optimise their networks. Unfortunately, this approach often leads to lost sales, costly real estate mistakes, and missed opportunities for growth, writes Rochelle Mountany, CEO of AfriGIS. The need for geospatial analysis in trade area decisions is clearer than ever. It's not just about where your next physical location should be – it's about understanding how each potential site fits into a broader network of customer behaviours, traffic patterns, and market dynamics. The problem is, many businesses still overlook geospatial science as a key component of their growth and development strategy. By failing to leverage this tool, they're missing a massive opportunity to optimise their operations and customer experience. Look no further than South Africa's shifting retail landscape. Dozens of stores across the country have recently closed. These closures often stem from a combination of factors, including safety issues and inconsistent municipal services. Frequent load shedding, poor road maintenance, and surging crime rates are making certain neighbourhoods unviable for stores that rely on stability and consistent customer flow. In addition to these environmental challenges, strategic missteps such as failing to correctly identify the customer segment a store is intended to serve have also contributed to closures. These misjudgements highlight the critical importance of understanding not just where customers are today, but where they will be in the future, and how their behaviours and preferences are shaped by their surroundings. Why geospatial analysis matters Trade area analysis is more than just about finding a good location for a new store. It applies to any service-based organisation, whether it's a retail chain, a fast food outlet, or a government department. In fact, public services like health clinics face similar challenges to retail networks when it comes to site planning. For instance, the South African government mandates that health clinics be located within a certain travel radius for underserved communities. Yet, often these clinics are located without any real data-backed understanding of future growth patterns, leading to inefficiencies and gaps in service. In retail, this issue manifests when businesses make location decisions based on outdated assumptions or once-off studies. Planning a store or service location based on static data means you're reacting to the current environment, not anticipating the market's evolution. This is where geospatial science offers real value – through predictive insights that allow businesses to not just react, but anticipate where future opportunities will emerge. The predictive power of geospatial science At the core of effective trade area analysis is the ability to model, forecast, and predict future trends. Without integrating geospatial data, businesses are essentially guessing about where future growth will occur. In the retail world, this means failing to plan for shifts in demographics, consumer behaviour, or commercial development in areas that may seem underserved today but will see population or income growth in the coming years. Geospatial science goes beyond static location analysis. It takes into account factors like local property trends, housing development, consumer behaviour, and competitor movements to create dynamic, adaptable models. By overlaying these data points on a map, businesses can identify high-potential locations that align with their strategic goals. This predictive ability can make the difference between opening a store in a saturated area or identifying an emerging market that could yield higher returns over time. A systematic, live system for smarter decision-making The problem with traditional trade area analysis is that it is often treated as a one-off study – conducted for a few months, analysed, and then shelved for years. In contrast, geospatial science, the likes of which is offered by AfriGIS, provides a systematic, live approach to location planning. With a geospatial analysis platform, businesses can continuously monitor and recalibrate their network strategies, ensuring that their decisions are always based on up-to-date data. This kind of approach doesn't just offer efficiency – it's a game changer for resource allocation. For example, if a flagship store isn't performing as expected, businesses can pivot. By understanding the real-time data through a geospatial lens, companies can reposition resources, potentially converting a flagship store into a mid-tier location and identifying the right place for a true flagship site. By making geospatial analysis a part of your ongoing strategy, businesses can make constant course corrections, rather than waiting five years to realise their initial assumptions were flawed. This proactive, data-driven approach helps ensure that your capital expenditures are allocated where they'll yield the best results. The cost of missing the geospatial edge When it comes to large-scale expansions – whether it's opening hundreds or thousands of new stores – geospatial science is no longer optional. It's an essential tool for ensuring that businesses make the right location decisions. Without accurate, predictive modelling, the investment required to roll out new stores or facilities becomes a huge gamble. A business that attempts to plan for such growth with spreadsheets or basic market research is setting itself up for failure. Geospatial science offers a level of insight and precision that cannot be achieved through traditional methods. It incorporates real-time data, predictive models, and customer behaviour patterns to provide a comprehensive, dynamic view of the market landscape. This is a massive competitive advantage, especially in sectors like retail and services, where location is everything. A more efficient, cost-effective way forward While implementing geospatial analysis may initially seem like a costly or complex undertaking, the truth is that it offers an incredibly cost-effective solution in the long run. At AfriGIS, we've designed geospatial platforms that allow businesses to tap into rich, updated datasets without needing to invest in specialised in-house teams of geospatial scientists. By sourcing, cleaning, and spatially enabling datasets, we give businesses the tools they need to make smarter, data-driven decisions without the need for ongoing, expensive consultancy studies. What's more, this data is continuously updated, ensuring businesses always have the latest insights at their fingertips. With a platform that integrates both current data and predictive models, businesses can confidently plan for future growth and adapt to changing market conditions without the need for costly, periodic studies. In an age where location-based decisions are critical to growth, businesses that fail to adopt geospatial science are leaving money on the table. Whether you're planning the next retail store, healthcare facility, or public service delivery point, ignoring geospatial analysis is a huge missed opportunity. The ability to predict, analyse, and continually adapt your strategy based on dynamic geospatial data isn't just a nice-to-have – it's a competitive necessity. By adopting a live, ongoing system for trade area analysis, businesses can make informed, future-proof decisions that drive growth, optimise resources, and reduce costly real estate mistakes. For companies looking to stay ahead of the curve, the time to integrate geospatial science into your planning is now.
Zawya
16-05-2025
- Business
- Zawya
AfriGIS launches 'Resolve Water' - A game-changing digital platform to help navigate Africa's water and climate future
Today, AfriGIS, a leading provider of trusted contextual insights, is excited to announce the launch of Resolve Water, a transformative digital platform designed to tackle Africa's growing water and climate risks. The platform will empower the private sector to turn water challenges into actionable opportunities by providing real-time, context-specific data that enables better decision-making. In the face of an escalating water crisis, South Africa and many parts of Africa are experiencing a critical shortage of clean water, compounded by climate change, population growth, and inefficient infrastructure. While climate risk is a global challenge, water risk is profoundly local - shaped by geography, infrastructure, and governance. This makes water risk both more tangible and solvable, provided businesses and governments have the right data at their disposal. "We believe water security is set to become a new competitive edge. Supply chains will be judged not just on emissions but on water resilience. Banks will need to understand water-adjusted credit risk, insurers will need to underwrite climate-sensitive portfolios with location-specific water intelligence, and investors will look for real impact and resilience," says Helen Hulett, chief sustainability officer at AfriGIS. 'Resolve Water is the platform that enables all of this — by design. It brings transparency and actionable insights to businesses, helping them mitigate risk and invest in sustainable water solutions that have long-term, measurable impacts on their bottom line." Resolve Water's platform integrates and enhances existing water data from a variety of sources, including government databases, satellite services, and meteorological agencies, into a single decision-ready interface. With a focus on transparency and collaboration, the platform enables businesses to: 1. Map Water Supply Chain Risks: From source to site, identifying quality and volume risks to ensure resilience and sustainable growth planning. 2. Quantify Mitigation Efforts: Linking risks to returns by measuring the financial, social, and environmental payback of water mitigation actions. 3. Facilitate Partnerships: Create visibility across public, private, and financial sectors to encourage collaboration on water risk management. 4. ESG Alignment: Provide businesses with the tools needed to meet regulatory requirements and drive genuine transformation within their industries. Rochelle Mountany, CEO of AfriGIS, highlighted the company's commitment to tackling Africa's water challenges: 'Our goal with Resolve Water is to help businesses move from passive awareness to proactive decision-making, making water-smart supply chains, resilient assets, and sustainable finance portfolios the new standard. With this platform, businesses and financial institutions will have the confidence and the data they needed for ROI-driven change.' Resolve Water also offers critical capabilities for banks, investors, insurers, and other stakeholders, allowing them to assess water-adjusted credit risk, forecast disruptions, and guide capital allocation. This will help unlock private sector financing for water resilience projects across Africa, a key component of the continent's adaptation strategy. While the initial launch of Resolve Water will focus on South Africa, AfriGIS's mission is pan-African, with the platform being developed to address the unique water management challenges across the continent. The solution is designed to align with Africa's regulatory, infrastructural, and environmental realities, ensuring that businesses are well-equipped to meet the demands of global ESG regulations. 'With more than two decades of experience powering location-based solutions across the continent, AfriGIS brings the deep technical and contextual expertise needed to launch a solution of this scale and ambition. This solution builds on the AfriGIS legacy of scaling solutions with trusted insights' said Mountany. "Water risk is becoming an integral part of global financial strategies," added Helen Hulett. "With Resolve Water, we're providing a platform that will not only help businesses understand their water exposure but also allow them to take action that drives resilience, compliance, and long-term sustainability." The launch of Resolve Water marks a significant milestone in AfriGIS's ongoing mission to support Africa's adaptation to climate change. The platform's cutting-edge technology, combined with AfriGIS's years of experience and deep expertise, will provide businesses with the intelligence needed to build water-smart futures for Africa.
Zawya
24-04-2025
- Business
- Zawya
South Africa: AfriGIS announces partnership with iPulse to strengthen market offerings as part of growth strategy
AfriGIS, a leading provider of trusted contextual insights, has entered into a strategic partnership with iPulse, a prominent cloud-based biometrics solutions provider. This collaboration aims to expand both companies' reach, offering an enhanced value proposition to their clients by combining AfriGIS' high-quality, validated data with iPulse's biometrics-as-a-service platform. The partnership is designed to complement the respective strengths of AfriGIS and iPulse, leveraging their product offerings for joint market success. This go-to-market partnership will bring additional value to their clients, enhancing existing offerings and helping both companies grow. Gary Chalmers, chief executive officer at iPulse "Our collaboration with AfriGIS is an exciting opportunity to enhance the services we provide to our customers,' said Gary Chalmers, chief executive officer at iPulse. 'By combining their trusted data with our platform, we can offer a unique and seamless experience to businesses of all sizes.' Rochelle Mountany, chief executive officer at AfriGIS, added to this saying: "In our business, we understand the importance of partnerships in driving growth. This collaboration with iPulse is a key element of our strategy to offer even more value to our customers. We're delighted to partner with a company that shares our vision for providing trusted, high-quality data in an accessible way. Together, we can create a broader impact, especially in markets where we have not traditionally had the reach or the scale to penetrate effectively. This partnership is built on trust, integrity, and a shared commitment to offering meaningful solutions." Partnership value offering AfriGIS, known for providing accurate data sets and geospatial solutions, typically operates through large structured channels, targeting bigger customers. iPulse, on the other hand, is renowned for its ability to cater to smaller customers with offerings such as its cloud-based platform, This platform simplifies the integration of biometrics into existing business models, allowing customers to access biometrics services without needing to sign complex contracts or commit to high volumes of transactions. The strategic collaboration will allow AfriGIS to extend its reach into smaller markets, previously out of its traditional scope. iPulse, in return, will benefit from AfriGIS' extensive data sets, providing their clients with access to trusted data at an affordable price. Chalmers further explained: "One of the unique aspects of this partnership is the ability for businesses to pay a platform fee for unlimited transactions rather than a per-transaction fee. This is an exciting prospect for many of our larger clients. Meanwhile, for AfriGIS, our collaboration will allow them to target smaller customers who may have been previously overlooked, creating a win-win for both parties." A partnership built on trust A cornerstone of this partnership is the enduring trust between the leadership of AfriGIS and iPulse Labs, forged over nearly two decades of collaboration and mutual respect. "What makes this partnership truly special is the trust Rochelle and I have cultivated over years of working together,' said Chalmers. 'Our shared history has allowed us to build a foundation of integrity and transparency. We understand each other's businesses, and we know that we're both committed to doing what's right for our clients. This trust is invaluable in any partnership, and it's what enables us to tackle new challenges and drive meaningful change together." Mountany reiterated this point, saying: "For us at AfriGIS, trust is fundamental. We believe in creating relationships with partners we can rely on, where there is no overlap or competitive conflict, but a clear and mutually beneficial value. The trust between iPulse and AfriGIS is what allows us to be agile, innovate together, and adjust our approach as needed. It's reassuring to work with a partner whose values align with ours, and that's what makes this partnership truly promising." AfriGIS is confident that this partnership will help both companies scale, by combining their complementary strengths and unlocking new market opportunities. Through this collaboration, AfriGIS can also offer their services to companies they would not have typically reached, while benefiting from iPulse's innovative approach to aggregating smaller customers. "We're proud to partner with iPulse, a company that shares our dedication to excellence and integrity. This partnership represents the next phase in our growth strategy, one where we work together to broaden our footprint and bring new services to a wider audience," concluded Mountany.
