Zimi is a tech-enabled fulfillment provider that is bringing Amazon Prime-like delivery to exporters in emerging markets. We help merchants deliver to their international buyers in 2 days instead of 2 weeks, and at a fraction of the typical shipping cost (80% cheaper on average). 

Cross-border e-commerce is a $2 trillion opportunity by 2030, with 64% of that coming from emerging markets across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. However, merchants in these regions face major challenges like high shipping costs, lengthy delivery times, and complex logistics. Zimi solves these problems by localizing inventory, handling customs clearance and last-mile delivery, and streamlining the returns process. Our aim is to make selling internationally as easy as selling locally. 
Amazon-like fulfillment for exporters in emerging markets
Title: Zimi: Fulfillment by Amazon for Exporters in Emerging Markets | Y Combinator

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### Fulfillment by Amazon for Exporters in Emerging Markets

Zimi is a tech-enabled fulfillment provider that is bringing Amazon Prime-like delivery to exporters in emerging markets. We help merchants deliver to their international buyers in 2 days instead of 2 weeks, and at a fraction of the typical shipping cost (80% cheaper on average). Cross-border e-commerce is a $2 trillion opportunity by 2030, with 64% of that coming from emerging markets across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. However, merchants in these regions face major challenges like high shipping costs, lengthy delivery times, and complex logistics. Zimi solves these problems by localizing inventory, handling customs clearance and last-mile delivery, and streamlining the returns process. Our aim is to make selling internationally as easy as selling locally.



Zimi

Founded:2023

Team Size:2

Location:

### Active Founders

### Audrey Djiya, Founder/CEO

Audrey Djiya is the Co-Founder & CEO of Zimi. Before Zimi, Audrey led international expansion and unlocked $M in revenue for e-commerce businesses like Peloton and launched fintech products to enable commerce at start-ups like Duplo (YC W23). She launched Nigeria’s first Buy-Now-Pay-Later solution. Audrey earned her MBA from Stanford University and BA from Dartmouth College.



### Peter Nsaka, Founder/CTO

Software Engineer with 8+ years of experience. Previously a Senior Software Engineer and Project Tech Lead @ Shopify. Currently working on Zimi to bring Amazon-prime like fulfillment to African exporters - making it easy, fast, and cheap for these businesses to sell internationally.



### Company Launches

[### Zimi: Fulfillment by Amazon for exporters in emerging markets](

**🛎TLDR:** We’re bringing Amazon-prime-like fulfillment to exporters in emerging markets - making it easy, fast, and cheap for these businesses to sell internationally.

**For example: Businesses selling with Zimi can deliver parcels to their international buyers for as little as ~$10 (instead of $80) and in just 2 days time.**

**❌ Problem**

**Cross-border e-commerce is projected to reach $2 trillion** in merchandise value by 2030, with 64% of this opportunity coming from emerging markets. However, merchants in these regions face significant obstacles:

*   **High shopping costs** often exceed 100% of order value
    
    
    
*   **Lengthy delivery times** of 2 weeks or longer
    
*   **Costly cross-border return processes** are a major financial drain
    
*   **Complex and time-consuming logistics management** (customs/duties, paperwork, tracking)
    

These challenges result in an estimated $50 billion annual loss for African businesses alone, with similar figures in Latin America and South Asia.

**📦 Solution**

[Zimi]( makes selling globally as easy, affordable, and simple as selling locally by optimizing cross-border logistics:

*   **Cheap and Faster Shipping:** We enable 2-day delivery at up to 80% less than current shipping costs by localizing inventory
*   **Simplified Returns:** We take the headache out of international returns, managing the entire process to reduce costs and improve customer satisfaction, saving businesses thousands of dollars.
*   **Streamlined Cross-Border Operations:** Zimi handles the complexities of international shipping, customs clearance, warehousing, and last-mile delivery, freeing merchants to focus on growing their business instead of logistics

Zimi’s first customer sold $25K in merchandise within 48 hours of announcing 65% cheaper shipping costs and fast delivery timelines with Zimi. We’re on track to unlock millions in revenue for businesses across India and Nigeria - our first two key export markets.

**🧑🏾‍💼👩🏾‍💼About Us**

We’re Peter and Audrey. We met while completing our respective graduate school programs in CS and an MBA at Stanford.



*   [Peter]( is a second-time founder with experience in cross-border freight, SMB payments, and building commerce products as a project tech lead at Shopify
*   [Audrey]( is a product leader, having scaled e-comm businesses like Peloton internationally and developed fintech solutions to enable commerce in emerging markets.

Zimi is named after Audrey’s great-grandmother, a quick-witted entrepreneur who successfully kept food on the table as a single mom through her export business. With Zimi, we’re creating opportunities for hustlers like Audrey’s great-grandmother by making global commerce more accessible to everyone.

**🙏Our Ask**

If you know any businesses in South Asia, Latin America, or Africa that are selling to North America and/or Europe, please let us know ([audrey@withzimi.com](mailto:audrey@withzimi.com)) or schedule some time with us [here](

#### YC Sign Photo


