Jumia Technologies Q1 Earnings Call Highlights

Key Points

• Jumia posted strong Q1 growth, with GMV up 32% year over year on an adjusted basis and revenue rising 39% to $50.6 million. Adjusted EBITDA loss narrowed to $10.7 million, or $9.7 million excluding Algeria exit costs, showing continued progress toward profitability.
• The company reaffirmed its 2026 guidance and said it remains on track for adjusted EBITDA breakeven and positive cash flow in Q4 2026, followed by full-year profitability and positive cash flow in 2027. Management said 2026 will be the year it demonstrates its path to profitability.
• Marketplace momentum and cost discipline helped offset macro pressures, with physical goods orders up 31%, active customers up 25%, and gross margin improving to 13.9%. Jumia is also cutting costs through automation, headcount reductions, and higher reliance on pickup stations to limit logistics and fuel exposure.

Jumia Technologies NYSE: JMIA reported stronger first-quarter growth and narrower operating losses as management said the African e-commerce company remains on track for its profitability targets despite supply chain and macroeconomic headwinds.

On the company’s first-quarter 2026 earnings call, CEO Francis Dufay said gross merchandise value, or GMV, rose 32% year over year on a perimeter-adjusted basis, while revenue increased 39% to $50.6 million. Adjusted EBITDA loss narrowed to $10.7 million from $15.7 million in the prior-year quarter. Excluding approximately $1 million in one-time costs related to Jumia’s exit from Algeria, Dufay said adjusted EBITDA loss would have been $9.7 million, representing a 38% improvement year over year in the company’s core business.

“2025 was the year we demonstrated the resilience and scalability of our model,” Dufay said. “2026 is the year we plan to demonstrate our path to profitability.”

The company reaffirmed its full-year 2026 outlook, calling for GMV growth of 27% to 32% year over year, adjusted for perimeter effects, and an adjusted EBITDA loss of $25 million to $30 million. Management also reiterated its goal of reaching adjusted EBITDA breakeven and positive cash flow in the fourth quarter of 2026, followed by full-year profitability and positive cash flow in 2027.

Marketplace Growth Offsets Macro Pressures

Dufay said first-quarter usage trends were strong across Jumia’s platform, with physical goods orders up 31% year over year on a perimeter-adjusted basis. Quarterly active customers increased 25%, and repeat purchasing also improved: 47% of new customers from the fourth quarter of 2025 made another purchase within 90 days, compared with 45% for the comparable 2024 cohort.

The company continued to emphasize physical goods, which accounted for nearly all orders and GMV during the quarter. Dufay said digital transactions through the JumiaPay app now represent only a residual share of orders, and Jumia will discontinue quarterly disclosure of total payment volume and Jumia payment gateway transaction KPIs beginning with the first quarter of 2026.

Average order value for physical goods increased to $36 from $35 a year earlier. Dufay said demand was broad-based across electronics, home and living, fashion and beauty, and most countries.

Jumia also reported growth in international sourcing. The company sourced 4.9 million gross items internationally during the quarter, up 87% year over year on a perimeter-adjusted basis, reflecting growth in Chinese sellers and increased supply from affordable fashion vendors in Turkey.

Revenue and Margins Improve

Executive Vice President of Finance and Operations Antoine Maillet-Mezeray said marketplace revenue totaled $27 million, up 50% year over year, or 35% on a constant currency basis. Third-party sales rose 45% to $23.2 million, driven by higher usage and effective take rates.

Marketing and advertising revenue rose 44% to $2.2 million, supported by sponsored products and tools rolled out in mid-2025. Maillet-Mezeray said advertising revenue represents roughly 1% of GMV, leaving “meaningful opportunity” to scale the revenue source. Value-added services revenue increased to $1.7 million from $0.6 million a year earlier, driven by warehousing fees and demand from Chinese sellers.

First-party sales revenue reached $23.1 million, up 30% year over year, supported by international partnerships, including Starlink in Nigeria and Kenya.

Gross profit rose 48% to $29.4 million, while gross profit margin as a percentage of GMV expanded 160 basis points to 13.9%. Management attributed the improvement to higher marketplace monetization, including commission increases implemented across most countries in January.

Cost Discipline Remains Central to Profitability Plan

Fulfillment expense rose 29% to $12.2 million as volumes increased, but fulfillment expense per order excluding JumiaPay app orders was flat year over year at $2.06, or down 10% on a constant currency basis. Dufay said productivity gains, call center automation and improved logistics partner rates helped offset higher activity.

Technology and content expense declined 8% to $8.9 million, reflecting headcount optimization, automation and renegotiated vendor contracts, including cloud infrastructure. General and administrative expense excluding share-based compensation rose 4% to $16.8 million, partly due to Algeria-related termination benefits and local currency appreciation.

Maillet-Mezeray said Jumia’s payroll stood at just over 1,980 employees as of March 31, 2026, down 8% since Dec. 31, 2024 and significantly below the 4,318 employees the company had at the end of the fourth quarter of 2022. He said Jumia expects to reduce headcount by at least another 200 full-time employees over the next two quarters.

Management also highlighted artificial intelligence and automation as drivers of efficiency. Maillet-Mezeray cited AI use in cybersecurity, software development, accounting, HR, logistics, customer service and seller operations.

Country Performance Varies Across Markets

Jumia reported strong growth in several key markets. In Nigeria, physical goods GMV increased 42% year over year, supported by home and living, upcountry expansion and more than 80 additional pickup stations opened during the quarter. Kenya physical goods GMV rose just under 50%, driven by local suppliers in home and living and international suppliers in fashion.

Ghana was the company’s fastest-growing market in the quarter, with physical goods GMV up 142% due to upcountry expansion, local marketplace scaling and international seller supply. Egypt’s physical goods GMV rose 3% year over year, but excluding corporate sales that were material in the prior-year period and have since been deprioritized, GMV increased 56%.

Ivory Coast was more challenged, with physical goods GMV up 16%. Dufay cited appliance supply disruption, smartphone headwinds and a nearly 60% decline in regulated cocoa farm gate prices effective in March, which he said reduced purchasing power for a large share of the country’s upcountry population.

The company completed its exit from Algeria in February. Dufay said Algeria represented about 2% of GMV in 2025, and the exit simplifies Jumia’s footprint while improving operational focus.

Supply Chain and Fuel Costs Remain Watch Items

Management said Jumia is monitoring memory chip and CPU price increases, Middle East geopolitical tensions, supply chain disruptions, shipping costs and fuel prices. Dufay said entry-level smartphone prices increased by approximately 20% between late 2025 and early April, with the impact felt most clearly in March. Smartphones account for roughly 10% of GMV, but Dufay said the category carries lower margins than categories such as fashion and does not represent 10% of gross profit.

He characterized the smartphone pressure as temporary, saying consumers are trading down while some brands face market-specific supply constraints. Jumia is mitigating the issue by diversifying its smartphone supplier base and scaling both local and international sellers.

Dufay also said fuel price increases began affecting several markets in March, with the most notable first-quarter cost impact in Nigeria. If higher fuel prices persist, he said they could pressure second-quarter logistics costs and partially offset savings from third-party logistics renegotiations.

However, Jumia’s pickup station strategy is helping reduce exposure to fuel costs. In the first quarter, 74% of shipped packages were fulfilled through pickup stations rather than door delivery, up from 67% a year earlier on a perimeter-adjusted basis.

Asked about the path to cash flow positivity, Dufay said the company’s priorities are clear: continue scaling top-line growth, improve unit economics and reduce fixed costs. “It’s mostly an execution game,” he said.

About Jumia Technologies NYSE: JMIA

Jumia Technologies AG NYSE: JMIA operates as a leading e-commerce and technology platform in Africa, facilitating online retail, logistics and digital payments. The company's marketplace connects millions of consumers with a diverse array of sellers offering electronics, fashion, home goods, groceries and more. Beyond its core retail services, Jumia has developed JumiaPay, a payment solution that enables secure transactions both on and off its platform, and Jumia Logistics, which provides end-to-end delivery and fulfillment support across the continent.

Jumia serves a broad geographic footprint in Africa, with operations in key markets such as Nigeria, Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Uganda, Tunisia and South Africa.

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