How One Nigerian Founder Is Reimagining Cross Border Logistics in Africa

Dominion Paul Ladi was trying to send a small parcel from Lagos to Kigali when she hit a wall. The cost was absurdly high, more expensive than shipping the same item to London. Meanwhile, dozens of flights were moving between those cities daily with empty luggage space. 

It did not make sense. 

What made the moment more jarring was knowing that sending the same weight from Nigeria or Rwanda to the United States or the United Kingdom could cost less than twenty dollars. The contrast stayed with her. It felt deeply wrong. 

What began as a personal frustration became LadX, a logistics venture that is quietly transforming how goods move across Africa. By turning everyday travellers into a distributed delivery network, Dominion created a system where unused luggage space becomes income for travellers and affordable shipping for senders. 

Today, LadX operates across eight countries, works with over 97 dispatch riders, and has moved more than three tonnes of goods across borders. In just four months, the platform transported over 500 kilograms of items between Lagos and Kigali alone. Behind those numbers is a story of grit, smart systems, and a founder who refused to accept broken infrastructure as the status quo. 

As Dominion began asking questions, the problem revealed itself as larger than a single shipment. Sending just one kilogram from Rwanda to Congo, a journey barely an hour away, could cost as much as two hundred dollars. What she once assumed was a solved industry began to look fragmented, inefficient, and deeply unjust. 

The idea for LadX did not come from a whiteboard. It came from a simple, familiar response. “Find a traveller and beg them to help you.”

That informal system already existed across the continent. In fact, kilo trade accounts for a significant share of cross border shipments in Africa. What was missing was structure, trust, and accountability. 

Rather than accept the gap, Dominion asked a different question. What if everyday travel could double as a logistics network, designed intentionally for safety and scale? 

That question became LadX, a platform that connects travellers with people who need to send goods. Travellers earn income while items move faster and at a lower cost. It is a simple idea, but executing it responsibly across borders required far more than passion.

Turning LadX into a functioning cross border logistics operation meant designing for trust, safety, and consistency from day one. Security was not an afterthought. It was the biggest concern. 

“We never want to put a traveller in danger,” Dominion explains. “People have lost their freedom and even their lives carrying the wrong items for the wrong people. We are not naive about that risk.” 

That reality shaped LadX’s operating model. The platform introduced robust KYC processes for both senders and travellers, implemented package verification protocols, and partnered with aviation security providers to ensure compliance and safety. 

One early assumption also proved wrong. Paying travellers alone was not enough. What people needed was assurance. They needed to trust the platform itself. 

LadX positions itself as the layer of trust between both sides. Senders do not need to trust travellers, and travellers do not need to trust senders. Both need to trust LadX. 

Through ALX Ventures, Dominion gained the frameworks to refine her business model, validate assumptions, and build systems that could operate reliably across multiple markets. Rather than focusing only on growth, the emphasis was on building something resilient. 

ALX Ventures did not build the business for her. Instead, it equipped her with the tools to translate vision into execution, helping her design a venture that could move beyond an idea into real world impact.

The early days were far from glamorous. 

For months, Dominion was personally going to the airport at midnight, one a.m., even two a.m., collecting items from travellers and ensuring deliveries happened safely. Operations were manual, exhausting, and uncertain. 

Every shipment became data. Every mistake informed the next decision. Did she question whether LadX would work? Constantly. 

Building without historical data meant learning in real time, questioning assumptions, and adjusting fast. That process became a feature, not a failure.

LadX is not just about moving parcels. It is about creating opportunity. 

The platform has partnered with travel agencies, engaged airlines such as RwandAir and Kenya Airways, and created income streams for travellers and dispatch riders across its pilot markets. 

Some of the most meaningful validation came from the first successful cross border deliveries. Not theory. Not pitch decks. Reality.

Today, the riders, vendors, and users who trust LadX with critical items, sometimes medication, represent far more than numbers. They represent income created, borders crossed, and systems slowly being rewritten.

What started as a personal frustration is now a distributed logistics system delivering goods, income, and access across Africa. 

When One Solution Creates Opportunity for Many

Dominion’s journey reflects a broader shift happening across the continent. African founders are not waiting for perfect infrastructure. They are building systems that work within reality and then improving it. 

“I had passion, I had grit, but ALX Ventures gave me the system, structure, and support I needed to turn that passion into a real venture,” she says. “It helped me transform a vision into a business with real impact.” 

For Dominion, scale is not just growth. It is trust, resilience, and dignity at scale. 

One idea became a platform. One solution became an ecosystem. One founder created opportunity for many. 

Discover More Stories of African Innovation

Dominion Paul Ladi and LadX are part of a growing wave of African entrepreneurs building scalable solutions to everyday problems. 

To explore more real stories of transformation, innovation, and impact from founders across the continent, visit www.alxafrica.com and discover how ideas are becoming businesses that change lives.

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