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Tag: ecommerce

  • Malaysia’s E-Commerce Payments More Than Tripled

    Malaysia’s E-Commerce Payments More Than Tripled

    The e-commerce market in Malaysia is among the fastest-growing in Southeast Asia, with a total transaction value of MYR25.6bn (US$6.2bn) in 2019. This is expected to cross $11 billion in 2023, according to GlobalData.

    Rising Internet and smartphone penetration, growing middle-class population and increasing tech-savvy millennials, coupled with government initiatives, propelled the e-commerce market value to grow more than three times between 2015 and 2019, according to GlobalData’s latest report, Malaysia Cards & Payments: Opportunities and Risks to 2023.

    Total transaction value in the space is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15.9 percent to reach 46.3bn Malaysian Ringgit ($11.2 billion) in 2023, the firm adds.

    In addition to the increasing number of online shopping population, the government is also supporting the country’s e-commerce market with initiatives under its National eCommerce Strategic Roadmap (NESR), said Sowmya Kulkarni, Banking and Payments Senior Analyst at GlobalData.

    As part of the NESR, the government is putting concerted efforts to increase awareness among consumers and businesses, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The government launched the Digital Free Trade Zone in March 2017 with an aim to position Malaysia as one of the regional e-commerce hubs.

    Alternative payments are the most preferred mode of e-commerce purchases in Malaysia, accounting for 38.2 percent in 2019, closely followed by payment cards with 38 percent, based on GlobalData’s 2019 Banking and Payments Survey.

    With consumers gradually shifting from cash to electronic payments in Malaysia, the rise in online shopping will provide payment companies a significant growth opportunity in Malaysia, added Sowmya.

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  • Shopee Joins Hands With SUTD To Nurture Singapore’sTech Talent Pipeline

    Shopee Joins Hands With SUTD To Nurture Singapore’sTech Talent Pipeline

    The Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) and Shopee, the e-commerce arm of Sea, announced that they will join hands to nurture Singapore’s tech talent pipeline. SUTD will look to leverage Shopee’s industry expertise, regional presence, and ecosystem to create new opportunities for SUTD students.

    The partnership will comprise two parts:

    1. Shopee-SUTD Scholarship: To provide financially disadvantaged students with the opportunity to pursue an education in technology and design.

    2. Shopee-SUTD Industry Collaboration Dialogues: To explore further opportunities for Shopee to broaden its support for SUTD’s capacity building initiatives for tech talent in Singapore.

    (L-R) Prof Chong Tow Chong, President of SUTD and Gang Ye, Group Chief Operating Officer of Sea at the Shopee-SUTD Scholarship Gift Ceremony on 23 January, 2020.

    The Shopee-SUTD scholarships will provide a total of four financially disadvantaged Singaporean students with full, four-year scholarships that will cover their tuition fees and study-related expenses. The scholarships will be awarded across four years, starting from the Academic Year 2020 intake. Each scholarship will be worth $15,000 annually and will not require recipients to undertake any service orbond requirements.

    The Shopee-SUTD Industry Collaboration Dialogues will see Shopee and SUTD explore additional avenues for industry-university collaboration by combining Shopee’s industry know-how, regional presence, and ecosystem together with SUTD’s educational expertise.

    These build on Shopee’s ongoing initiatives with SUTD, which include internship programmes and knowledge-sharing sessions, as well as project sponsorships – most recently, Shopee sponsored Team SUTD’s participation at the Autonomous Aerial Vehicle Challenge (AAVC) 2020 in Chumphon, Thailand.

    Gang Ye, Group Chief Operating Officer of Sea, said, “Shopee is always looking for new ways to better the lives of people – whether it is by building communities, helping entrepreneurs get started, or creating valuable learning opportunities for our leaders of tomorrow. Together with SUTD, we want to do our part to shape the future of Singapore.”

    Prof Chong Tow Chong, President of SUTD, said, “SUTD is grateful to donors like Shopee, who understand the important role education plays in lifting families out of financially difficult circumstances, and whose generosity help ensure that all deserving students with financial need have equal opportunities to pursue a high-quality education.”

    Shopee’s partnership with SUTD is part of Sea’s “10 in 10” initiative, which aims to provide at least 10 million people across the region with the skills and training they need to succeed in the digital economy over the next decade.

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  • Tips for Boosting Your Business Sales

    One of the keys to operating a successful business is to ensure that your sales strategy is effective. Consumer behavior and expectations change regularly, so it is important to stay up to date with trends and new sales strategies that you can apply to boost your business. With the rapid rate that technology is developing, staying up to date with software and tech that can help your business is also a must. Whether you are selling products or your services, these principles can be applied to drive more business.

    Understand your target audience

    Knowing your potential customers is vital, so be sure to do lots of research about the customers you expect will want to use your company. Once you have a clear idea of who your target audience is, you can tailor your marketing messages to them, and even your language and tone should be developed with your target audience in mind. For example, if your typical customers are high-earning professionals, your brand tone should be professional. If you are selling products that appeal to teenagers, then your tone would be completely different.

    Have a strong digital marketing strategy

    Your digital marketing is crucial in generating leads, so make sure that your strategy is strong from the outset. From having a website that looks professional and has a powerful Call-to-Action, to using a CRM to manage your customer base and send out tailored marketing campaigns; investing in your digital marketing is so important. If you do not have the time to do your own marketing, you can always go to an agency, or find a freelancer to do the work for you.

    Provide incentives for customers

    Offering discounts or other incentives is a highly effective way to attract new customers or drive repeat custom. Lots of businesses provide incentives to drive more sales, for example, a restaurant might offer a discount on a certain night, other examples include supermarkets offering loyalty points. In a slightly different vein, the variety of your services and the products you offer, could equally be considered an eincentive for both new and existing customers. One such sector that does this successfully is the online casino industry. The wide selection of game types and genres of titles they offer, acts as a huge point of attraction for customers that are already swamped with content in such a hectic world of entertainment. We suggest doing some research about the best incentives to appeal to your target audience.

    Build relationships with your existing customers

    It costs your business a lot more to sell to a new customer than it does to sell to existing ones, so treat your existing customers well. Research shows that gaining a new customer can cost five times more than keeping an existing one. As well as providing exclusive offers to existing clients, communication is important; whether that is responding to questions on social media, thanking them for providing a review or sending an email with useful information.

    Do plenty of market research

    Understanding the market that you operate in is essential to success and putting in the work in terms of doing your market research will help to drive more sales. From calculating the best pricing structure, to understanding which social media platforms customers are most likely engage with, it is important that you take your market research seriously to generate more sales.

    Following these tips should help you to focus on the key areas that will boost sales for your business.

    “Royalty-Free-Stock-Image-grow-sales” (CC BY 2.0) by Alan O’Rourke

  • Amazon India to use mom-and-pop shops as delivery points

    Amazon India to use mom-and-pop shops as delivery points

    Global online retailer Amazon has partnered with more than 20,000 local “kirana” stores in India to serve as delivery points.

    The move is part of the firm’s “I Have Space” program to build relationships with such stores in 350 Tier 1, 2 and 3 cities within the territory. It reflects competitor Flipkart’s recent investment in its ShadowFax network of neighborhood stores.

    “We believe the recent partnerships are expected to drive Amazon’s momentum across the country’s shoppers and mom-and-pop shops,” read a report by stock research firm Zacks. “Consequently, this will bolster the company’s presence in the retail space of India, which holds immense prospects.”

    Local stores stand to benefit from the initiative from the extra income they may receive as Amazon’s delivery partners.

    The Zacks report notes that Amazon’s stocks have returned just 14.2 percent over the past year, well below the industry’s rally of 22.4 percent.

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  • Zomato takes over Uber Eats in India

    Zomato takes over Uber Eats in India

    Local food-delivery app Zomato has purchased Uber Eats in India.

    “We are proud to have pioneered restaurant discovery and to have created a leading food-delivery business across more than 500 cities in India,” said Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal. “This acquisition significantly strengthens our position in the category.”

    The purchase was made via an all-stock transaction, which awards Uber 9.99 percent ownership of Zomato.

    “India remains an exceptionally important market to Uber and we will continue to invest in growing our local Uber Rides business, which is already the clear category leader,” said Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi. “We have been very impressed by Zomato’s ability to grow rapidly in a capital-efficient manner and we wish them continued success.”

    Uber Eats in India has discontinued operations and is now directing restaurants, delivery partners, and users of the Uber Eats apps to the Zomato platform.

  • Indian authorities investigate e-commerce giants over anti-trust accusations

    Indian authorities investigate e-commerce giants over anti-trust accusations

    Bezos, whose worth has been estimated at more than $110 billion, is officially in India for a meeting of business leaders in New Delhi.

    But the Competition Commission of India announced Monday that it was investigating Amazon and its main rival in the domestic market, the Walmart-owned Flipkart, over accusations they had killed off small businesses by favoring “preferred sellers” on their platforms.

    Media reports said Bezos has sought a meeting with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, but neither the government nor Amazon would confirm if talks would be held.

    Amazon has said it will cooperate with the investigation and was “confident” it was operating legally.

    But traders across India said they would stage protests during the visit to demand the government takes action against Amazon.

    The merchants accuse Amazon and Flipkart of flouting foreign investment rules and pouring billions of dollars into discounts that force traditional traders out of business.

    Flipkart was Indian owned until bought by Walmart for $16 billion in 2018 following a bidding war with Amazon.

    The Confederation of All India Traders, which says it represents 70 million small businesses, vowed “strong protests” in 300 cities — including New Delhi, where Bezos was to speak on Wednesday at the Amazon business summit.

    The competition commission said it will report in 60 days, but its inquiries normally take a lot longer.

    Last year it fined Google $21 million for “search bias” and abusing its dominant position.

    After arriving Tuesday, Bezos paid tribute to India’s independence leader Mahatma Gandhi, dressing in an Indian kurta to lay flowers at a memorial in Delhi.

    He described Gandhi in a Twitter message as someone who “truly changed the world”.

    Bezos will also visit India’s financial capital Mumbai, where he will reportedly attend a party with Bollywood celebrities on Thursday evening.

    Since its launch in India in 2016, the company’s streaming platform Amazon Prime has partnered with the who’s who of Bollywood to produce entertainment content in several Indian languages.

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  • Chinese E-Commerce Zall Joins Singapore’s Digital Banking

    Chinese E-Commerce Zall Joins Singapore’s Digital Banking

    Business-to-business e-commerce firm, Zall Smart Commerce, will be the latest to apply for a digital banking license in Singapore.

    The Chinese company will be part of consortium joined by Japanese trading company Marubeni and Singapore-based Global eTrade Services, a subsidiary of digital solutions provider CrimsonLogic.

    The consortium is seeking a wholesale digital banking license in Singapore and it hopes to contribute to the city-state’s development as a global financial hub for trading, Zall said in a statement. It joins 14 other groups that have applied for the same license alongside another seven that have applied for digital full-bank licenses, according to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said earlier this month. The regulator added that up to five of the licenses could be issued by June this year.

    In addition to its e-commerce business, Zall has some experience in digital finance in mainland China. The firm acquired a virtual banking license for the market in 2017 and has since been operating as Z-Bank.

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  • Amazon India To Have 10,000 Electric Vehicles In Its Delivery Fleet By 2025

    Amazon India To Have 10,000 Electric Vehicles In Its Delivery Fleet By 2025

    Amazon India said that it will induct about 10,000 electric vehicles in its delivery fleet in the country. The e-commerce giant says that the idea is to reduce its carbon footprint in the country in accordance to the Climate Pledge that Amazon has signed. As part of the pledge, Amazon announced its plans to introduce 10,000 EVs into its delivery fleet globally in 2022 and one lakh vehicles by 2030, saving 4 million metric tonnes of carbon per year by 2030. Amazon had already begun an EV pilot project in a few cities across India and the learnings from the pilot project has helped the company to have a scalable and a long term EV delivery fleet by 2025. Amazon India announced this right after Amazon President and CEO, Jeff Bezos made a trip to India and announced an investment of $ 1 billion and creation of 1 million jobs by 2025.

    “The fleet of 10,000 EVs-including three-wheeler and four-wheeler vehicles-has been designed and manufactured by original equipment manufacturers in India,” the company said in a statement. The company has been working with a few Indian companies in order to ready a fleet of electric vehicles in its delivery fleet to ensure that last mile deliveries are sustainable. The government’s focus to encourage the adoption of electric vehicles in the country, and steps towards setting up of charging infrastructure with the FAME II policy, has helped the company accelerate and chart its vision for EVs in India, it added.

    “At Amazon India, we are committed to building a supply chain that will minimize the environmental impact of our operations,” Akhil Saxena, vice president for customer fulfillment (Asia Pacific and Emerging Markets) at Amazon, said in a statement.

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  • Walmart India lays off management executives

    Walmart India lays off management executives

    Walmart India will let go around a third of its top executives at its Gurugram headquarters. The retailer has been struggling in the territory and is now responding by laying off more than 100 top-level executives, with more terminations expected to come later. It will also close its Mumbai fulfillment center and its largest warehouse, and will hold plans to open new stores within the Indian market.

    “We are always looking for ways to operate more effectively to serve our members,” said a spokesperson for Walmart India. “This requires us to review our corporate structure to ensure that we are organized in the right way to best meet the needs of our members. Impacted associates have been offered enhanced severance benefits and outplacement services to support their transition.”

    Following a decade of trade within India, Walmart’s sales growth has remained problematic, with the firm recording a net loss of US$24.26 million during the last fiscal year.

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  • No respite likely for Hong Kong-based retailers

    No respite likely for Hong Kong-based retailers

    Hong Kong-based retailers will continue to face tough times as domestic and international issues impact the economy according to a leading analyst.

    Anne Ling, an equity analyst at the investment bank and financial-services company Jefferies Group,  says every 10 percent decline in retail sales impacts the earnings-before-tax (EBIT) of Hong Kong retail companies by between 7 percent and 55 percent. Retail sales in October and November fell by about 24 percent and during the first 11 months of last year were down by 10.34 percent.

    “For international brands like Prada, Samsonite and L’Occitane, we estimate the impact at the sales level is not that material [because] Hong Kong [represents] less than 2 percent to 5 percent of sales. However, at the EBIT level (circa 3 percent to 7 percent) Hong Kong has a higher contribution.”

    Ling warns Hong Kong-based retailers are vulnerable to a risk of the further market slowdown from a higher unemployment rate and weaker consumer confidence in the city.

    “In such times, the immediate lever to hand for brands and retailers is to increase cash flow by reducing inventory and staff and/or rental costs. However, over the medium term, we would expect most players to reset or readjust their Hong Kong store networks to avoid over-reliance on tourist spending.

    “We see a need for the Hong Kong and international brands and retailers listed in Hong Kong, which have heavily de-rated in recent years, to review their business strategies and seek out new business drivers, [so] that they remain relevant to investors.”

    Ling says she expects Sino-US tensions to continue while the mainland Chinese government focuses on stabilizing economic growth this year.

    Given that backdrop, Jeffries would favor recommending investment in Hong Kong-based retailers and manufacturers of low-ticket items like staple goods, food retailers and the fast-food segment, as they are more resilient.

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  • JewelleryNet relaunches with new features

    JewelleryNet relaunches with new features

    B2B online community JewelleryNet has launched a series of new features on its platform for sourcing, market intelligence, industry updates and trade fair information.

    The new JewelleryNet’s faster speed and mobile-responsive interfaces are expected to allow for faster, targeted searches; more productive visits; greater user convenience and efficiencies as well as a better user experience altogether.

    The online resource brings together professional buyers and sellers, based on Informa Markets’ Jewellery Group. It has more than 147,000 registered users from 190 countries and regions.

    “As we enter a new decade, a reinvigorated JewelleryNet is ready to help the international gem and jewelry industry address current business realities and explore more avenues of growth,” said Informa Markets’ director of jewelry fairs Celine Lau.

    JewelleryNet hosts the online showrooms of more than 4000 suppliers from around the world, featuring more than 10,000 products across nine categories. The platform’s showroom services and business solutions are available to non-trade-fair exhibitors through a supplier membership plan.

    JewelleryNet also provides market intelligence and industry updates produced by trade publication JNA. Aside from regular news stories on the latest developments in the international gem and jewelry industry, the site carries content from the bimonthly, bilingual (English & Simplified Chinese) magazine and its various titles along with their digital versions.

    The platform likewise supports more than 10 major international jewelry trade fairs and provides details of other trade shows and events all over the world. More projects, initiatives, and events in Informa Markets’ Jewellery Group portfolio will eventually have a presence on the platform.

    JewelleryNet now also offers its members and visitors more opportunities for business development. Suppliers on the platform receive marketing exposure through online showrooms backed by strategic, sustained promotions online, onsite and on social media, among others.

    Another key component of the new JewelleryNet is its online-to-offline solutions to facilitate business dealings on the platform and at trade fairs. Interactive features allow buyers and suppliers to connect and communicate directly.

    The platform has also introduced business matching services for more efficient and effective sourcing. Buyers can submit quotation requests for specific items seeking suppliers; the program likewise assists buyers in planning their sourcing activities at trade fairs by allowing them to examine suppliers’ backgrounds, preview their goods, preschedule onsite meetings efficiently and then conduct business at the show.

    “JewelleryNet’s expanded business solutions reaffirm Informa Markets’ unwavering commitment to the growth and continued development of the international jewelry industry,” said Lau. “Its new interactive functions and business matching program complement our trade fairs and events by enabling buyers and sellers to conduct preliminary discussions and due diligence prior to negotiating business deals at our shows. These align with our corporate philosophy to create platforms for international markets to trade, innovate and grow.”

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  • E-commerce drives boost in Singapore retail sales in November

    E-commerce drives boost in Singapore retail sales in November

    Singapore retail sales in November remained sluggish, rising just 0.6 percent year on year after motor vehicles were removed from the data. Including vehicles, sales fell by 4 percent.

    Significantly, online sales rose to a new high, accounting for 8 percent of the estimated S$3.6 billion (US$2.7 billion).

    “Compared to the 6.1 percent recorded in October 2019, the increase was due to higher online retail sales from major online shopping events such as Singles’ Day, Black Friday and Cyber Monday,” Statistics Singapore said in a statement.

    Month on month, Singapore retail sales in November rose by 1 percent.

    Year on year, sales of motor vehicles and furniture & household equipment decreased 22.4 percent and 10.9 percent respectively. Sales through department stores and of recreational goods declined by 8.4 percent and 4.5 percent respectively.

    Conversely, apparel & footwear sales grew by 4.3 percent, due partly to higher demand for bags and footwear. Mini-marts & convenience stores, watches & jewelry, and computer & telecommunications equipment sales, as well as supermarkets & hypermarkets, recorded sales increases ranging from 1.2 percent to 3 percent

    Food & beverage services sales

    Sales of food & beverage services grew by 5.5 percent year on year in November, reaching $898 million.

    All food & beverage services sectors registered growth, with fast-food outlets leading the way, at 12.4 percent. Sales at restaurants, cafes, food courts & other eating places and by food caterers increased by between 1 percent and 6.4 percent.

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  • tBox by Posti is the “perfect” place to pick up your online orders

    tBox by Posti is the “perfect” place to pick up your online orders

    Design studio Fyra may have created the “perfect” environment for online shoppers to collect their online orders: Box by Posti, the Finnish postal service.

    The brightly colored room, which serves as a convenient drop-off for customers to pick up purchases they have made online, has a recycling area, fitting rooms, and product show space.

    The 600-locker Box by Posti space was created with the intention of making it more than just an ‘unadventurous row of lockers’. Color-coded areas are used in the space to support the different service paths and mark and clarify different functionalities.

    “The consumer behavior of the Finnish people has changed significantly,” said Posti’s head of customer experience and channels Kaisa Ilola. “Before, there was a piece missing between the online store and home. Box was created to fill in the missing piece.”

    Visitors to Box by Posti are welcome to open or pack their parcels in the green unboxing area, which contains scissors, tape and pens as well as parcels and envelopes, or in the recycling zone that features reusable packaging material. They can also arrange for refunds on unwanted items slated for return.

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  • Reliance Industries taking on Amazon in India

    Reliance Industries taking on Amazon in India

    Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries is moving to take on Amazon in India by founding a new digital retail platform.

    The firm, led by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, has of late been engaged in testing to refine its new online shopping portal JioMart, which is expected to list more than 50,000 grocery items. Select customers who pre-register have been offered free home delivery and no-questions-asked return policy.

    The service will initially only operate within three neighborhoods in the vicinity of Mumbai, taking on both e-commerce market leaders within the territory, Amazon and Flipkart.

    Ambani has recently made several investments outside Reliance’s core industrial businesses, including telecommunications and retail acquisitions that are projected to account for 50 percent of the firm’s profits within a few years. He has previously spoken of ambitions to totally transform India’s unorganized retail market.

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  • Vietnam improves its online shopping readiness

    Vietnam improves its online shopping readiness

    Vietnam has jumped five places to 64th in this year’s global index of readiness for online shopping, a UN report says.

    With an average score of 61.1 points on a scale of 100, Vietnam did better than most of its Southeast Asian peers in terms of its preparedness for e-commerce, according to the B2C (business-to-consumer) E-commerce Index recently released by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.

    Singapore ranked third on the global list while Malaysia came in 34th, Thailand (48th),  Indonesia (84th), the Philippines (89th), Laos (113rd), Cambodia (122nd), and Myanmar (126th).

    The ranking measured 152 countries and territories around the world based on four indicators with a high correlation to online shopping: Internet server access, postal service reliability, share of the population who use the Internet, and share of population aged above 15 who have an account with a financial institution or mobile-money-service provider.

    According to the report, 70 percent of Vietnamese people use the Internet and 31 percent of individuals aged from 15 and above have bank accounts or mobile bank accounts.

    Vietnam has proportions of secure Internet servers and postal reliability at 66 and 77 percent respectively.

    The report also showed online shoppers in Vietnam account for 31 percent of Internet users and 19 percent of the 94-million population.

    The country has targeted that 30 percent of its population shop online between 2016 and 2020, with yearly sales value of approximately $350 per person.

    E-commerce revenue reached $2.26 billion last year, up 30 percent over 2017, according to Germany-based data portal Statista.

    Vietnam’s e-commerce market is estimated at $5 billion this year and is set to reach $23 billion in 2025, according to a recent report by Google, Singapore-based investment firm Temasek, and U.S.-based consultancy Bain.