South-east Asian shoppers seize on new e-commerce events

BRANDS are expected to head into the Singles' Day e-commerce event on Nov 11 on a surge of regional consumer interest, judging from the trend in recent months.

That's as "Double Days" sales, such as 9.9 or 10.10, have been a buzz for South-east Asian retailers, according to data from advertising technology company Criteo.

During 10.10 in October, sales in South-east Asia rose by 46 per cent on the last two weeks of September, the firm's data showed.

"Key markets include Indonesia, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Malaysia, where we see high volumes and increases in online retail sales and traffic in these markets during Double Days shopping festivals," Taranjeet Singh, managing director for South-east Asia and India at Criteo, told The Business Times.

"Apart from the better-known 11.11 and 12.12 moments, we are seeing the emergence of new Double Days. In Malaysia and Vietnam, for example, 7.7 was revealed to be an emerging sales peak this year."

That's as Criteo data showed that Malaysian retail sales picked up on July 7 by 132 per cent, compared with the month of June, while sales in Vietnam rose by 64 per cent over the same period.

A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU

Friday, 8.30 am

Asean Business

Business insights centering on South-east Asia's fast-growing economies.

Sign Up

But it is Nov 11, which Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba turned into a shopping event in 2009, that Mr Singh believes will remain "the main retail sales moment" in the region.

He noted that retail sales rose by 477 per cent in Singapore during 11.11 last year, compared with sales in Oct 2019. The growth was stronger than the 36 per cent increase seen on 12.12 - a trend that he expects to hold true again in 2020.

With the Covid-19 pandemic dampening consumer sentiment, he advised brands to build up their customer engagement efforts to better capture Singles' Day sales, such as through in-app retail transactions.

Criteo also suggested that brands differentiate their offerings beyond discounts - for example, with "online-meets-offline purchasing", such as "buy online, pick up in store" services, since more than four in five purchases worldwide are still offline transactions.

Omni-channel shoppers tend to spend more than store-only shoppers, said Mr Singh, citing in-house data from the firm. "Hence, it is crucial that brands adopt a consistent omni-channel strategy to connect their physical stores and ecommerce presence."