KUALA LUMPUR: eCommerce remains an important channel for entrepreneurs to develop their businesses through its low barriers of entry.
The ease of connecting to consumers online especially during the last two years has cemented the need for businesses to continue growing their eCommerce stores, despite the economy reopening and increasing footfall at brick-and-mortar stores.
Due to the vast potential of eCommerce and the ease and convenience of starting a home business, many women have also turned to starting their own online business and building their own successful empires.
The number of Malaysian women who have started to venture into digital entrepreneurship to seek new income opportunities as lockdowns disrupted traditional businesses have also grown.
To empower more women to explore entrepreneurship and provide them with more opportunities to contribute towards their families, communities and socioeconomic development, eCommerce platforms like Lazada seek to continuously flatten the barriers to digitalisation.
Through partnerships with the public and private sector and stimulus packages, Lazada is committed to enable these businesswomen to capitalise on the online marketplace as the acceleration of digital adoption continues in Malaysia.
Iv Ho, Lazada head of seller engagement said: "The new Digital norm is here to stay and sellers are eager to capitalise on incentives and support provided by Lazada and government entities to continue growing their businesses. With the lowered barriers to entry, we have seen an increase of sellers on our platform, including female businesswomen. More women are breaking barriers and rising up to achieve their goals through entrepreneurship."
To further support entrepreneurs, including women, on their digitalisation journey, Lazada provides support in the form of stimulus packages in various areas including educational, logistics, and financial incentives aimed to ease operational costs and grow their online presence, while setting them up for long-term growth and sustainability.
As part of its Hari-Harimau 2022 New Seller Kickstarter Package, sellers can onboard the digital platform easily with incentives including free set-up cost, zero per cent commission fee, free ad credits and exposure on the Hari-Harimau campaign page.
Sellers will also have full access to Lazada University's training and tools, as well as 1-month free access to the Customer Engagement Management (CEM) tool.
The eCommerce leader also proactively collaborates with the government through the Ministry of Finance and governmental agencies such as the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), for initiatives to encourage digitalisation of businesses including the Shop Malaysia Online and Go-eCommerce campaigns.
"eCommerce is one of the core pillars of Malaysia's digital economy, democratising economic access and opportunities to many.
"At MDEC, we are committed to providing all Malaysians, including women, with the skills and tools to reap the benefits of our burgeoning eCommerce," said Mahadhir Aziz, chief executive officer of MDEC.
"Our Go-eCommerce Onboarding and Shop Malaysia Online campaigns have successfully onboarded 157,566 women entrepreneurs in 2021, far surpassing the target of 30,000.
"As part of our Malaysia Digital aspirations and the National Ecommerce Strategic Roadmap (NESR) 2.0, we will continue striving to build and catalyse a thriving eCommerce ecosystem," he added.
Many Malaysian sellers have also been able to fast track their e-commerce growth with Lazada.
Lazada's recently concluded its Forward Women Awards, paying tribute to two Malaysian women who achieved tremendous success growing their eCommerce business during the pandemic.
Kong WT of Big Care Mart was recognised as one of the Lazada Women of the Year, and Nurul Izzan Zamzuri of Niz Craft was awarded the Creative Award.
Speaking on their success, Kong WT and Nurul Izzan Zamzuri noted that the low barriers of entry and rapid shift in consumer behaviours propelled by the pandemic to prioritising online shopping enabled them to target a wider audience which would have otherwise been difficult to achieve had the lockdowns not forced people to remain at home.
Kong WT of Big Care Mart said: "Making the decision to digitalise my business was the right choice not only because of changing consumer behaviours during the pandemic, but also because of the freedom and flexibility to work while being a mum to my kids. When I started my eCommerce store, it was a steep learning curve. With perseverance and determination to succeed, I managed to successfully apply what I had learnt from Lazada University and utilise seller tools to help grow my business and at one point, my sales hit seven figures."
Nurul Izzan Zamzuri of Niz Craft said: "While many businesses were affected during the pandemic, I was fortunate to experience an increase in sales as people began to explore different activities while staying home. The ease and flexibility of opening my own eCommerce store led me to quitting my full-time job during the pandemic to focus on building my dream of turning my passion into a successful business. Being an entrepreneur in the digital age is very much simplified, especially when you can connect with your customers seamlessly to offer the best customer experience."
Beyond the full suite of technology, insights and trainings available to sellers through Lazada University, Lazada also has the region's largest, most intelligent integrated logistics and supply chain network for eCommerce.
This is powered by a data-driven, smart routing algorithm that enable the company to deliver swiftly and cost effectively for both consumers and its sellers, to meet surging demand in Malaysia and Southeast Asia.
Lazada's seller support measures are part of its efforts to assist local communities in coping with the Covid-19 pandemic.
"Pakej Kedai Pintar", Lazada stimulus package for small and medium enterprises, was launched in April 2020.
As a result, Lazada recorded more than a 300 per cent increase of new sellers onboarding with a growth sales uplift that more than doubled by the end of 2020.
As the appetite for online shopping grows, Malaysian-owned businesses are poised to be frontrunners in the eCommerce industry as the race continues for businesses to seize market share and dominate in the region presenting lucrative opportunities for women in the space.
Source: https://www.nst.com.my/business/2022/03/784818/empowering-women-entrepreneurs-build-business-empires-through-ecommerce