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Blu Dot surpasses 2,000% ROAS with self-serve CTV ads
Home furniture brand Blu Dot blew up on CTV with help from Roku Ads Manager. Here’s how:
After a test campaign reached 211,000 households and achieved 1,010% ROAS, the brand went all in to promote its annual sales event. It removed age and income constraints to expand reach and shifted budget to custom audiences and retargeting, where intent was strongest.
The results speak for themselves. As Blu Dot increased their investment by 10x, ROAS jumped to 2,308% and more page-view conversions surpassed 50,000.
“For CTV campaigns, Roku has been a top performer,” said Claire Folkestad, Paid Media Strategist, Blu Dot. “Comping to our other platforms, we have seen really strong ROAS… and highly efficient CPMs, lower than any other CTV partner we've worked with.”
Using Roku Ads Manager, the campaign moved from a pilot to a permanent performance engine for the brand.
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| Africa’s daily intelligence on business, policy and power—what changed, what it means and what to watch next. | ||
| OPENING SIGNAL | ||
| Africa spends a record $58B on defence but lacks a top 100 industrial giant |
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Africa's military spending reached a record $58.2 billion in 2025, an 8.5% increase from 2024, according to SIPRI. Despite this growth, no African defence company made the 2026 Defense News Top 100 ranking of global arms producers.
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BUSINESS · SOUTH AFRICA / US
Oryx Desert Salt marks 5-year US retail expansion milestone
South African artisan exporter Oryx Desert Salt marked five years of continuous national distribution across 485 Whole Foods Market and 230 World Market locations in the United States. Now exporting to over 23 countries, the self-funded enterprise demonstrates how niche African consumer goods brands can maintain long-term shelf space in competitive Western grocery markets.
POLICY · LIBERIA / EUROPE
European donor terminates 18-year Liberia aid deal in strategic shift
A major European donor nation has formally concluded its 18-year bilateral aid program with Liberia as European governments reallocate overseas development assistance toward regional security and domestic defense commitments. The withdrawal reinforces the urgent necessity for West African sovereign governments to accelerate domestic revenue collection.
POWER · AVIATION / MAURITIUS
Emirates upgrades Mauritius route with Premium Economy deployment
Emirates officially rolled out its Premium Economy cabin configuration on two of its daily flights between Dubai and Mauritius starting September 1, 2026. Targeting Africa’s second-wealthiest nation by per capita income, the international airline carrier is betting on sustained high-end business mobility and tourism demand.
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PARTNER MESSAGE
Your Billing Process Is Slower Than You Think
Most SaaS finance teams underestimate how much billing lag is costing them.Most SaaS finance teams underestimate how much billing lag is costing them.
The Tabs Billing Lag Calculator benchmarks your process against top SaaS companies and puts a dollar figure on the gap — in two minutes.
AS OF APPROX. 08:00 WAT, SEP 1, 2026 · BUSINESS INSIDER AFRICA MARKETS
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ENERGY MARKETS
Oil rallies past $91 as European energy demand shifts
Brent crude oil surged to $91.74 a barrel on September 1, climbing 1.4% as global energy market tightness returned. For major African energy producers including Nigeria, Angola, and Algeria, sustained oil prices above $90 reinforce foreign exchange reserves and fiscal revenues. However, net fuel-importing nations across East and West Africa face immediate import bill pressure, risking renewed currency volatility and elevated domestic logistics costs.
THE AFRICA ANGLE: Importing economies should prepare for secondary inflation shocks across transport corridors, while exporters should deploy windfall revenue toward clearing FX backlogs.
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PARTNER MESSAGE
AI Insights. Real Growth. Higher GMV, Better Profits
The difference between growing stores and stagnant ones isn't more effort. It's better insights. StoreClaw analyzes your Shopify and Amazon data, surfaces your biggest growth opportunities, and helps you increase GMV while protecting profit. Start free with bonus tokens. No credit card required.
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