Case Study: Building Africage, a Logistics Marketplace

The Challenge: Fragmented Exchanges

Logistics between the West and Africa involves information, actors, and steps that are difficult to track manually. The product needed to centralize discovery, matching, and next actions without hiding the real complexity of shipping.

The Solution: A Workflow-Oriented Marketplace

The architecture combines a Next.js interface, Supabase, Stripe payments, and n8n for selected workflows. Matching, profiles, and transaction states are designed as observable steps rather than isolated screens.

What the Project Taught Us

A marketplace must handle incomplete cases, cancellations, trust, and responsibility from the start. Notifications and payments do not replace explicit business rules or an interface explaining the next action.

A Foundation for Growth

The value of a first version lies in its ability to produce learning: which profiles connect, where transactions stall, and which operations can be automated. This guides future versions without inventing unmeasured outcomes.

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