Tag: Amazon

Singapore – E-commerce has provided businesses accelerated growth due to convenient access to the market for both sellers and buyers. Export is one of them and according to the latest MSME study by Amazon, MSMEs in Singapore anticipate greater sales growth prospects overseas than at home, with 35% of small businesses against 13% respectively. Currently, close to one-quarter (24%) of MSMEs in the country conduct B2C e-commerce, which of more than 90% use it for export.

The study found that Asia Pacific countries – Malaysia, China, Australia, Indonesia, and Thailand – are seen as the top five e-commerce export markets in five years’ time, or by 2026. About 87% of those surveyed locally in Singapore agreed that e-commerce is critical for their ability to export, with top motivations including the ability to reach overseas customers, access to sales and marketing tools that are available on e-commerce marketplaces, and support for logistics and payments provided by these marketplaces.

So what would hinder companies to realize their export strategies? According to the report, key challenges foreseen by Singaporean MSMEs can be narrowed down to three categories – barriers in cost, regulation, and information and capabilities.

High cross-border shipping costs came out as the most common challenge faced by Singapore MSMEs with 81%. The study notes that while Singapore offers a robust range of grants to support local businesses on their e-commerce export journeys, about one-third of small enterprises (32%) surveyed admitted that they will find further support valuable.

Additionally, over three-fourths (78%) of MSMEs surveyed cited a lack of clarity in import regulations as a key barrier to selling overseas via e-commerce, while only 19% believe that current advisory support on importing regulations is sufficient.

Lowered confidence to compete in the global arena also emerged as a sentiment, where 72% of MSMEs in the country believe they lack the ability to fare well versus other sellers globally. Still within technical issues, 71% admitted that they are unsure of foreign consumers’ demands and preferences.

At large, the study found that the annual value of (B2C) e-commerce exports in Singapore is estimated at S$1.4b in 2021 and could reach S$3.5b in 2026 if MSMEs accelerate their pace of using e-commerce to sell overseas. MSMEs are estimated to contribute 45% of Singapore’s B2C value of e-commerce exports in 2021.

Singapore – Despite the ongoing pandemic, small businesses in Singapore are widely supported locally, thanks to a growing number of Singaporeans rallying their support and patronage to their products, a new report from the Singaporean arm of e-commerce giant Amazon and market research firm YouGov shows.

According to the report data, the Gen X demographic, who are born from 1965 to 1980, are the most supportive among the local demographic, tallying around 48% of respondents saying they at least buy once a week from a local business. This was then followed by millennials (44%) and Gen Z’ers (34%).

While majority of all shoppers polled said they will support organizations that have a charitable component, 63% of Gen Z shoppers said that for the same product, they would rather buy from a seller that gives back to the local community, versus one that does not, compared to 55% of both millennial and Gen X shoppers.

In terms of what type of purchases are being made, clothing and accessories topped the type of purchases being made, with 59% of respondents saying so, 64% of that data are Gen Z shoppers. Other categories include health and personal care (47%) and groceries (46%).

Regarding increased purchases made during the pandemic, pet supplies were the top purchases locally, tallying around 85% response rate from respondents. This is followed by beauty and skincare (82%) and books (78%).

With the introduction of social distancing measures and heightened public health alerts, 2 in 5 Gen X shoppers (39%) said the ability to avoid public spaces and stay safe is a key motivator for online shopping.

While 27%of Gen Z shoppers said the availability of international selection is a crucial online shopping motivator, the highest compared to their Millennial and Gen X counterparts.

Lastly, with the majority of Singaporeans identifying as Bargain Hunters (32%) and 41% saying that lower prices are the top motivator for online shopping, it comes as no surprise that 23% of shoppers rely on product comparison sites when making online shopping decisions.

“Customer obsession has always been at the heart of Amazon’s business globally. By keeping our finger on the pulse of changing consumer trends and behavior, we ensure the user experience is optimized for customers’ shopping preferences,” said Henry Low, country manager at Amazon Singapore.

Sydney, Australia – Despite Amazon being a well-known global e-commerce giant, online shoppers across Australia still find Amazon not to be a top choice for their online shopping needs, a new survey from digital experience management company Sitecore shows.

According to their latest data, only a fifth of their overall Australian respondents say Amazon as their top choice for online shopping. Despite such findings, Amazon is mainly gaining traction from their younger generation customers. Through the platform’s online retail service, Sitecore notes that adoption of Amazon as the go-to site is higher among Gen Z, compared to older generations (31% v 21%).

This finding is strengthened by the fact that the platform’s online retail experience has resulted in nearly one in three Australian consumers finding Amazon’s shopping experience to be more personalized when compared with other retailers. On aggregate, Amazon shoppers in Australia would move to other retailers if they provided the same incentives, discounts and purchase experience as Amazon.

Amid positive notes of high trust and personalization of Amazon’s shopping experience, 4 in 10 Australians—and half of Gen Z (53% vs. 39% among older gens) – would like to reduce the amount of shopping they do on Amazon. The research also said that Gen Z in Australia are more likely to shop directly from brands online, rather than Amazon (75% vs 66%).

Part of the reason for this consumer behavior of moving away from big brands is due to the fact that many Aussies fear low-quality and/or counterfeit products, which might be more evident in the larger platforms.

Paige O’Neill, CMO at Sitecore, comments on the findings, “The battle for digital retailer brand preference is in its early days in Australia. There is an opportunity here for Internet commerce players to expand their share of the market, but it won’t be an easy win. They’ll need to offer comparable levels of service and personalization throughout the customer journey as the fight for market share heats up.”

Singapore – As International Women’s Day (IWD) draws near, the Singapore arm of e-commerce giant Amazon has launched a dedicated storefront which will feature local products from women-owned SMEs.

The storefront will showcase stories and products offered by 12 women-owned businesses over the next 4 weeks – from craft supplies to baby and maternity essentials. Starting today, customers can read more about the journey and motivations of the featured entrepreneurs, shop their offerings on Amazon.sg, and enjoy promotions on selected products as part of the IWD celebration.

Some of the featured owners include Yvon Bock, founder of baby and maternity lifestyle brand Hegen; Beth Candice Wu, founder of local gift company and social enterprise HoneySpree; Pauline Ng, founder of cult-premium skincare brand Porcelain, and Suzanne Vetillart, CEO of sustainable handcrafted jewelry brand Boma Jewelry. 

For Bernard Tay, country leader at Amazon.sg for seller services, and head of Amazon Global Selling for Southeast Asia, women are a critical force for Singapore’s economic progress, and the growth of their businesses fuels its collective success.

“At Amazon, we are committed to offering equal opportunities for all sellers to help them unleash their entrepreneurial potential, regardless of their gender and background. Amazon is proud to mark this year’s International Women’s Day by celebrating the resilience of women entrepreneurs and showcasing their success stories,” Tay said.

He added, “We hope that their experiences will resonate with other entrepreneurs, encouraging them to #ChooseToChallenge gender conventions and grow their businesses globally with us.”

Amazon Singapore is also teaming up with Enterprise Singapore to help local retailers, including women-run businesses, sell online and scale globally. Through the  Market Readiness Assistance (MRA) scheme by Enterprise Singapore, entrepreneurs can avail of a maximum S$100k grant per new country they expand to, for up to 70% of eligible costs for overseas promotion, overseas business development, and overseas country set up. 

This then allows female entrepreneurs to avail tools and resources to sell online with Amazon.sg, expand their business across Amazon’s 20 stores worldwide, and reach more customers anywhere.

Bangalore, India – The Indian arm of e-commerce giant Amazon is once again hosting for the second time its ‘Amazon Smbhav’ summit on April 15 to 18, 2021, aimed at leveraging digital strategies and innovations to Indian customers, entrepreneurs, and small businesses.

‘Smbhav 2021’ aims to bring together important industry and thought leaders for invigorating discussions on the way ahead towards creating an ‘AatmaNirbharBharat’, the vision by the Indian government to be self-sufficient, by unlocking possibilities for businesses and entrepreneurs through partnership with Amazon.

Centered around the theme ‘Unlocking Infinite Possibilities for India’, the four-day summit will tackle various industries, ranging from manufacturing, retail, logistics, IT/ITeS, content creators, start-ups, brands, and entrepreneurs across India. Over 30,000 participants are expected to participate at Amazon Smbhav, learning about best practices and industry trends from over 70 speakers.

For Manish Tiwary, vice president for Amazon India, ‘Smbhav 2021’ showcases Amazon India’s commitment to “being a strong partner in making the 21st century the Indian century.”

“As we continue to work with a gamut of Indian businesses and entrepreneurs, we are committed to bringing to them tools, technology, and innovation that empower the Indian economy, help create jobs at scale, and unleash entrepreneurial agility in companies of all kinds and sizes. Smbhav 2021 will therefore be a unique platform offering opportunities to unlock these possibilities towards an ‘AatmaNirbharBharat’,” Tiwary said.

During the last Smbhav 2020, Amazon pledged to invest an additional US$1B to digitize 10 million MSMEs, to generate US$10B in cumulated exports from India, and create an additional 1 million jobs in India by 2025.

The summit will primarily focus on four key pillars – Innovation, Skilling & Job Creation, Digitization, Exports & Startup Enablement. The summit will bring together diverse perspectives from eminent business leaders, policymakers, solution providers, and Amazon leadership on areas that are most relevant for India’s growth. 

Other summit events that will be included are ‘Amazon Smbhav Awards’ that recognizes businesses, innovators, and individuals that have contributed to the concept of ‘self-reliant India’, and the ‘Amazon Smbhav Startup Pitch Competition’, where participants must pitch feasible startup pitches and get a chance to win Amazon-related cash prizes and mentorships. 

The event will also be conducting an ‘Amazon Smbhav Hackathon’ that will provide an opportunity for individuals and startups to present breakthrough ideas that have the potential to solve real-world problems in the areas of business innovation, sustainability & healthcare.

Singapore – For the first time, Amazon will be hosting a seller summit in Southeast Asia for small and medium-sized enterprises, which will be a two-day complimentary virtual event. 

The event, which carries the theme ‘Start Local, Go Global’, will focus on empowering SMEs to develop strategies and skills and reach more customers locally and globally. It will be held on January 28 and 29, 2021 at 10 am onwards, Singapore Time. 

Amazon said the summit was brought about by the increase of preference for digital-first shopping among consumers. The event will be discussing the impact of e-commerce trends and how local businesses can sell online on Amazon’s 18 markets to expand internationally. 

Singapore’s Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing will grace the virtual event on the first day as the guest of honor. He will be joined by leaders of Amazon Singapore, industry experts, and local business owners selling on Amazon Singapore.  

The event aims to make online cross-border selling more accessible to SMEs by equipping them with the insights and resources to address rapidly evolving consumer demands and expectations. 

“Supporting small and medium-sized businesses has been a fundamental part of the work we do at Amazon and we are excited to continue expanding our support for sellers in Singapore and Southeast Asia,” said Henry Low, country manager of Amazon Singapore. 

“I believe that everything big starts with something small. With our growing resources and support for local sellers here, we want to empower them to seize the huge opportunities in selling online and across shores — helping them start local, go global. The Amazon Southeast Asia Online Seller Summit 2021 is another milestone for us to bring more sellers online, support their growth journey, and connect them with customers everywhere,” added Low. 

The Summit will also include one-on-one sessions with third-party service providers such as the logistics and payment companies from Amazon’s Service Provider Network, to share best practices for businesses to bounce back quicker from the impact of COVID-19 and expand their retail presence. 

Participating SMEs can also access professional training courses and programs to sell with Amazon, with workshop sessions hosted all throughout the summit.

Singapore –  In order to aid shoppers in sifting through the multitude of items for their holiday haul, Amazon Singapore has launched its holiday gift guide. In a dedicated page within the site, Amazon compiled and laid out a roster of items according to different categories, such as to whom the shopper intends to give the gift to, gifts within a certain price range, and gifts by interests. 

Shoppers are able to view a list of appropriate gifts for men, women, and teens, as well as for kids, babies, and even pets. For those who are price-conscious, Amazon has grouped items that are capped off at S$25, S$50, and S$100. 

Amazon has also enabled it for users to browse items according to their intended purpose this holiday, presenting consolidated selections for decorating, gift wrapping, arranging parties, as well as selections for toys, books, and beauty products.  

Within the holiday shopping page in Amazon, there is also a mounted ‘Holiday Toy Store,’ which houses a curated list of Top 100 Toys and Top 100 Board Games. 

Aside from the guide itself, Amazon has announced its early deals for the featured items. Up until 26 November, shoppers can enjoy from 15% to 50% discount across its product categories – baby products, beauty and health, toys, groceries including wine and spirits, as well as, home and kitchen items, electronics, and pet products. 

In fulfillment of a new partnership, shoppers are also given a chance to help underprivileged children, with Amazon pledging a donation of S$5 with every order above S$50 spent on products purchased from the non-profit organization Children’s Wishing Well’s gift guides. Amazon.sg said it will be donating a minimum of S$10,000 to the organization.

Singapore – Amazon’s live streaming service Twitch has announced that it has appointed two former Dentsu International heads Mandar Kambli and Sunil Yadav to be its newest leads for the APAC team. Kambli will join as Programmatic Enablement Lead, while Yadav will be assuming the role of Agency Development Lead.

In August, Twitch named a new marketing head for APAC, and the latest hires come as it continues to grow its team in Singapore and across the whole region.

Kambli comes to Twitch with 14 years of industry experience with agencies, ad tech, and publishers. He was with Dentsu from 2015-2019 where he led programmatic product, supply, and data initiatives across the region. He was most recently the head of advertising platforms for product listing app Carousell.

Meanwhile, Yadav brings with him 20 years of expertise across advertising, media planning, and digital communications. He was previously president of APAC at Dentsu’s media innovation and investment arm Amplifi where he managed media buying and media partnership. Notably, he built its programmatic agency Amnet, across 14 markets, and launched its content agency TheStoryLab in APAC. Prior to Dentsu, he worked with media agencies Mindshare and Starcom, and TV company Mediacom.

At Twitch, Kambli will be responsible for developing and supporting Twitch revenue growth across multiple regions and sharing his expertise on programmatic. With it, he will be helping enhance Twitch’s work with its customers and manage a number of key relationships. Yadav’s role, on the other hand, will charge him with the task of leading all agency partnership negotiations and relationships. He will help build upon Twitch’s success in other regions to help APAC brands and their media agency partners develop deeper relationships with the brand.

“Our pace hasn’t slowed since our last key hires in APAC, and we’re excited to bring key team members in Mandar and Sunil aboard,” said Steve Ford, vice president of Twitch for sales in APAC.

“As new users in APAC and across the world are continuing to come to Twitch, they’re finding their community and forming lasting bonds with creators. Our continued expansion will make for a better experience for these new users, as well as the brands that excite them. We’re planning even more big hires across APAC in 2020 and beyond, and look forward to taking exciting new steps in a number of markets here,” added Ford.

On the new role, Kambli said, “I’m excited to join Twitch during this period of unprecedented activity and growth in APAC. Twitch is multiplayer entertainment – it’s unique, interactive, live, and such an exciting place to be, whether you are a viewer, creator, advertiser, agency, partner, or anyone in between. And our goal is to work hand-in-hand with everyone to make the most of it.”

Meanwhile, Yadav commented, “On Twitch, everyone comes together to celebrate, learn, and grow their interests and passions, and I’m looking forward to helping agencies to learn about how to best work on Twitch to do new and exciting things. Gaming and live streaming are two areas where APAC’s audience and its passion are unparalleled, and we are just scratching the surface of the exciting new things that are possible for brands on Twitch’s platform.”

Twitch has also announced the start of its first salespeople based in Taiwan, providing a physical presence to support early inroads that Twitch has made with partners and organizations in the country. The new hires in Taiwan join the existing content and marketing teams in its office location.


Singapore – Amazon has announced that its annual deal event Prime Day will be running on its official dates, October 13 and 14. The event will be a first for Amazon Singapore since it launched last year. 

Aside from the discounts and savings in store for shoppers, Amazon will be launching e-Gift Cards on the event. Amazon.sg’s e-Gift cards can be redeemed on an extensive selection of products and during Prime Day, members who purchase at least S$50 e-Gift card in a single transaction will be able to receive a bonus e-Gift card of S$10. 

Amazon will also be introducing 10 new categories of products on Amazon.sg during the event. These will be musical instruments, gardening, furniture, jewelry, and watches, as well as luggage, business industrial, scientific supplies, and also video DVD, music, and software. 

Starting October 1, customers can already shop early exclusive offers and deals on Amazon.sg leading up to Prime Day. Each day from October 1 to 12, items from one of Amazon’s category will be up for a 30 – 45% discount.

“This year’s Prime Day is an amazing opportunity for Prime members to enjoy savings with thousands of deals, explore our new expanded selection and get their holiday shopping done early, all from the comfort of their homes. In the midst of an unprecedented year, we’re excited for Prime members in Singapore and worldwide to discover new ways to support local retailers and save big on everything they need and love,” said Henry Low, country manager of Amazon Singapore.

In an effort to build on the momentum of the event, Amazon Singapore has also partnered with digital media Mothership to launch a shopper personality quiz on the site to help shoppers discover their shopper persona.

Singapore – Local retailers selling on Amazon.sg can receive the Digital Resilience Bonus (DRB) administered by Singapore’s Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), reminds the company in a press release.

DRB is one of the efforts by the Singapore government amid the pandemic to uplift the digital capabilities of businesses across their different points of operations. Initially, DRB is offered to F&B and retail enterprises. 

IMDA has listed the different solutions that enterprises can apply for a subsidy, which includes eCommerce. Sellers, if eligible, can receive a one-time S$2,500 automatic cash payout.

According to IMDA, in order to qualify, the enterprise must be incorporated on or before 26 May 2020 with a Food Service or Retail SSIC code, and has been using the digital solutions on IMDA’s list between 1 June 2020 and 30 June 2021.

Bernard Tay, the country leader for Amazon.sg seller services said, “As local retailers continue to adapt to the new normal, digitalisation is key to enabling them to build resilience and tap into new revenue streams domestically and internationally.”

He added, “Small and medium businesses are a part of Amazon’s DNA and we remain committed to their success. The new initiatives will provide the necessary push in encouraging local retailers to step up digitalisation efforts and we’re happy to work with IMDA on the Digital Resilience Bonus to offer additional support to them during this time of need.”

Just recently, Amazon has pledged to invest US$18 billion in 2020 to support small and medium businesses globally and an additional US$100 million assistance to be given out during its annual deal event Prime Day and throughout the holiday season.

The Singaporean unit of the company is also in an ongoing collaboration with Enterprise Singapore on the eCommerce Booster Package which will offer local retailers a one-time grant of up to S$9,000 when they register to sell with Amazon.sg.