Lazada is one in every of the e-commerce firms in Southeast Asia, owned by Alibaba Group and founded by Rocket Internet and Pierre Poignant in 2012. Nevertheless, Lazada Group co-founder and chief strategy officer Magnus Ekbom once said on Tech Conference in Asia held this 12 months, “as an entrepreneur, the very first thing I’d do might be not try to interrupt Indonesia.” Indonesia is one in every of the most important markets in Southeast Asia and is widely considered a major and competitive market with a population of roughly 270 million.
Ekbom believes founders could consider other markets in Southeast Asia, equivalent to the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam. He has experience in working in cross-border business, and based on his experience, he also advises firms whether or not they shouldn’t cross the border until they’re ready.
He explains that doing business in numerous countries will increase the extent of complexity of the business, and corporations should make sure that the market they select is the appropriate place to conduct global marketing before moving to a special goal market.
Meanwhile, Ekbom points out that entrepreneurs should at all times be inquisitive about every possible market goal due to their unique diversity.
LOCATION
With the large rate of urbanization, Southeast Asia is an important marketplace for Chinese entrepreneurs, even with different tastes and cultures, which will not be easy in any respect.
Ekbom suggested firms cannot “capture the essence of a market” whether it is an organization stretching from China to Southeast Asia without being aware of the relevant consumers they try to serve. A localized strategy is a very powerful thing that entrepreneurs should concentrate to.
Lazada Group affiliated with Alibaba Group to further assist in global marketing. “Southeast Asia is a place to build companies, not just a target market for other companies to enter,” Ekbom said, pointing to the variety of every region. “The money is being invested well, as always, but Southeast Asia should and must build its own version of what our consumers, SMEs and brand are looking for,” he added.
CHINESE INVESTMENT
Helen Wong, partner at Qiming Venture Partners, said the acceleration in Southeast Asia will not be as fast as she expected. He expects China’s investments in Southeast Asia to do well. It is difficult for Chinese investors to search out good opportunities to conduct marketing activities throughout the region.
“I think investors’ money is very simple. It will go where there is growth,” Ekbom said. This is a brand new opportunity for investors in Southeast Asia.
source: techinasia
