After opening Tambala Market to the public in January, we listened to how people shop and discovered that products are often only one part of a much bigger plan.
Much of the shopping we do begins with something happening in our lives. A child has a birthday. A sister is graduating. A cousin is getting married. Mother’s Day is approaching, or friends are planning a Sunday gathering.
We start looking for a gift, an outfit, food, decorations or something else we need for the occasion. When the event is in another city, we may also need a ticket and somewhere to stay. These needs feel connected because they are part of the same plan, but finding them online often means searching across different social media pages, WhatsApp groups and websites.
This is the reason Tambala Market is bringing shopping, events and stays together.
We launched so that we could learn
On 20 January 2026, we opened Tambala Market to the public for early use and testing.
The platform was not perfect, and we knew there were parts of the experience that still needed work. We launched because we wanted to build a marketplace that people would genuinely find useful, and we knew we could not do that without seeing how people used it in real life.
Buyers told us how they searched for products, what information helped them decide and where the buying process became difficult. Sellers told us what they needed to manage their products, orders, payments and customer questions. Other people used the platform and shared what they expected from an online marketplace in Malawi.
We listened, fixed what was breaking and continued improving the experience. By May, we had made strong progress, expanded the team and resolved many of the problems affecting the early platform. More importantly, we had begun to understand not only what people wanted to buy, but why they were looking for it.
The pattern behind many purchases
The most important lesson was not about a single feature. It was about the moments that lead people to shop.
Many people were buying because something was happening. They were preparing for a birthday, graduation, wedding, holiday, workshop, family gathering or weekend away. The shopping was part of a larger plan.
Someone attending a graduation might need an outfit, a gift and accommodation near the venue. A person planning a birthday might need decorations, food, a cake and a place to bring people together. Someone travelling for a show or a conference might need to buy a ticket for the event, prepare what to wear and find somewhere suitable to stay.
Once we saw that pattern, the next question became clear: why should people have to search for each part of the same plan in a different place?
Making everyday discovery easier
This is not about adding unrelated features to make the platform look bigger. It is about making Tambala more useful when people are deciding what to buy, what to do and where to go.
A customer should be able to discover an event, find products that may be useful for it and see nearby accommodation without beginning the search again somewhere else. A person planning a weekend away should be able to find a stay, see what is happening nearby and buy something needed for the trip. Someone who opens Tambala to shop may discover an activity or place they did not already know about.
We want these experiences to support one another while remaining clear and easy to use.
More ways for local businesses to be found
Bringing products, events and stays together also creates new opportunities for businesses and organizations.
A seller can reach people who are preparing for a particular occasion. An event organizer can make an event easier to discover, manage registrations or sell tickets. A hotel, lodge, guest house or property host can reach people who need accommodation. A venue can be discovered by families, businesses and community groups looking for a place to gather.
These businesses offer different things, but many face the same challenge: reaching people beyond those who already know them. Important information is often spread across posts, messages, posters and personal recommendations. Customers may struggle to compare options, confirm details or find the information again when they are ready to act.
Tambala Market can bring that information into a more organized experience while allowing every seller, organizer and host to keep their own identity.
Building carefully with the people who will use it
Products, events and stays do not work in exactly the same way. Buying a product is different from registering for an event or booking accommodation. Availability, payments, cancellations, refunds, customer support and trust must be handled carefully in each part of the platform.
That is why we have been testing these experiences with early users and improving them before we expand further. We are now opening to more shoppers, sellers, event organizers, hosts and people who bring communities together.
We need people to search, buy, register, book and tell us honestly where the experience works and where it does not. We do not expect every part of Tambala Market to be complete from the beginning. We expect to learn, make changes and build around what people genuinely need.
This is how Tambala Market has developed from the start. We did not launch with every answer. We launched with a clear purpose and a willingness to listen.
What the first months have shown us
By July 2026, products worth more than MWK 1 million had been sold through Tambala Market. Nearly 400 products listed by more than 50 sellers.
That milestone matters to us, but not only because of the amount sold. It shows that people are willing to discover local businesses online, place orders and try a different way of buying and selling. Every completed order also teaches us something about search, payments, communication, delivery and trust.
We are proud of the progress, but we are still early. There are more problems to solve, more businesses to support and more people we need to hear from.
Our aim is to help build the digital foundation that commerce in Malawi needs: a dependable place where people can find what they need and where local businesses can be seen, trusted and paid. That kind of platform cannot be built through assumptions. It must be tested in real situations and improved with the people who use it.
What we are working towards
We want Tambala Market to become a useful starting point for everyday discovery in Malawi. Whether someone is preparing for a family celebration, attending a business event, planning a trip or simply looking for something they need, Tambala should help them move from an idea to a complete plan more easily.
Tambala Market started as a place to shop. Listening to our users showed us that shopping is often connected to something larger. It is connected to the people we celebrate, the places we visit and the experiences we share.
That is why we are bringing shopping, events and stays together.
We believe this is the right next step because it reflects how people actually live. We are building it carefully because we want it to work. Most importantly, we are building it with the people and businesses it is meant to serve.
Tambala Market is open to shoppers, sellers, event organizers and hosts who want to help shape what comes next. Explore the platform, try the new experiences and tell us what would make Tambala more useful to you.
Originally published on Tambala Market.