Tag: Lazada

Singapore – E-commerce platform Lazada has launched an activation in Singapore that turns everyday items into fashion statements in collaboration with BLKJ Havas.

Partnering with brands, Lazada’s activation saw influencers flaunting unique styles with Orchard Road as their runway.

The activation is part of Lazada’s ‘Always the Better Price’ campaign, highlighting its mission of offering competitive prices from daily necessities to fashion. 

While underscoring its commitment to ‘Lowest Price Guarantee’ for consumers, it also aims to enable customers to shop with pride in the deals they receive.

The launch of the activation in Singapore is part of a series of roll-outs planned across Southeast Asia.  Apart from Singapore, a localised version of the activation has been released in the Philippines and will be launched in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand this January.

“We’re thrilled to have brought this bold and fun campaign to life, showcasing how better prices can turn any purchase into a reason to celebrate and share. By working with Lazada to make the work ‘un-advertising,’ we’ve successfully captured attention in a truly unique way,” Rowena Bhagchandani, chief executive officer and co-founder of BLKJ Havas commented.

“Our customers already rely on us for their daily needs, but with Always the Better Price, we’re going a step further,” Marcus Chew, chief marketing officer of Lazada Group, said.

“This campaign reinforces our commitment to better prices through our Lowest Price Guarantee, while showing showcasing our diverse categories offerings. From everyday essentials to stylish fashion pieces, we’re giving shoppers more ways to look good, feel confident, and flaunt their smart choices without breaking the bank,” Chew added.

Singapore – E-commerce platform Lazada has launched its latest ‘12.12 All Out Sale’ campaign with DO.ASIA, highlighting remarkable shopping deals for customers.

With the upcoming double-digit sale day on December 12, Lazada delves into consumers’ behaviour of comparing prices in its new campaign. 

The campaign aims to position Lazada as the e-commerce platform of choice for online shopping through its all-out sale offerings. It reflects Lazada’s commitment to fun shopping experiences for its customers.

Designed for Lazada’s key markets, the campaign has been rolled out in Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines. It aims to engage consumers through traditional and digital media along with other activations.

Beer Poonnotok, founding partner and executive creative director at DO.ASIA, commented, “It’s a fun way to nudge people to switch to something better. The ‘12.12 All Out Sale’ highlights Lazada’s unbeatable deals and smarter choices, much like the Evil Queen’s jealousy over Snow White’s newfound beauty—except here, the beauty lies in smarter shopping and better deals.”

“It was a pleasure working with such a lovely, respectful, collaborative team. And most importantly, we’re super proud of the work. It’s loud, brash and VERY Lazada,” Matthew Collier, managing director of DO.ASIA, said.

Marcus Chew, chief marketing officer of Lazada Group, said, “This 12.12, Lazada is excited to bring joy to our consumers with a vibrant, fun, and fresh creative experience developed in partnership with DO. Celebrating those who’ve switched to the better sale, this concept goes beyond the video, seamlessly integrating across digital, social media, and offline activations. Executed across all six countries with local nuances, this campaign’s success is a testament to our strong collaboration in crafting the right creative idea.”

Singapore – Majority or 88% of consumers in Southeast Asia rely on AI-driven content and product recommendations for purchasing decisions, with 83% willing to pay more for AI-enhanced shopping experiences, reveals a whitepaper jointly developed by Lazada and Kantar.

The report reveals that nearly two-thirds of respondents (63%) in Southeast Asia perceive AI as widely adopted in online shopping, with more than half identifying AI chatbots (63%), translations (53%), and visual product searches (52%), as key recognised features in ecommerce.

In terms of actual adoption, however, usage of these features remains below 50%—47% for AI chatbots, 40% for visual product searches, and 40% for translations. The report also indicates that only one-third of respondents found these features helpful in meeting their needs.

According to the whitepaper, the gap between perceived and actual effectiveness of AI features highlights an opportunity for ecommerce platforms to leverage AI and data insights, bridging this divide to boost customer satisfaction.

Interestingly, while only a few respondents found AI features in online shopping helpful, the report reveals a strong trust in AI-powered platforms. The majority rely on AI for personalised recommendations (92%) and product summaries (90%), with 88% making purchasing decisions based on AI-generated content and suggestions.

When examining consumer motivations for using AI in online shopping, over half of SEA respondents (52%) cited convenience as a primary reason for adopting AI in their personal lives. Similarly, 51% prioritise product and seller reviews, highlighting an opportunity to enhance review depth, relevance, and authenticity through AI technology.

Furthermore, a substantial majority of shoppers (83%) are willing to pay more for AI-powered shopping experiences. This willingness is linked to the positive benefits shoppers perceive, with nearly half of respondents (49%) indicating that AI enhances discovery, customer service, and overall enjoyment during online shopping.

James Dong, chief executive officer of Lazada Group, elaborated, “The launch of our inaugural whitepaper marks a pivotal moment in understanding how AI is shaping the future of eCommerce. As technology evolves, so do consumer expectations. This whitepaper explores the transformative potential of AI and provides insights into how businesses in Southeast Asia can harness it to create personalised, seamless, and smart shopping experiences.” 

“At Lazada, we are committed to staying at the forefront of innovation, ensuring that AI drives both efficiency and enhanced customer engagement across all touchpoints. Going forward, we will continue to invest in AI and cutting-edge technologies to revolutionise the eCommerce ecosystem,” he added. 

With 80% of respondents using AI features on eCommerce apps at least once a week, the whitepaper urges eCommerce platforms to seize the opportunity to enhance their AI integration efforts and provide more holistic and exceptional shopping experiences.

“AI has become an integral part of the eCommerce landscape, enabling smarter decision-making and more tailored customer experiences at scale. As we dive deep into how we can enhance AI algorithms to personalise product recommendations, optimise supply chains, and enhance customer service interactions, it is clear that AI will remain a key enabler in pushing the boundaries of what eCommerce can achieve. What excites me most is how we are building robust AI systems to solve complex technical problems in ways that directly improve the shopping experience for our customers,” said Howard Wang, chief technology officer at Lazada Group.

Singapore – Stellar Lifestyle, the business development arm of SMRT Corporation, has launched its inaugural innovation space, Hive Express, at Raffles Place MRT station to help merchants pilot cutting-edge retail experiences across Singapore’s MRT network. 

The new innovation space builds on the success of Stellar Lifestyle’s Hive 2.0 hub, enabling merchants to accelerate retail innovations across the transit network more quickly and cost-effectively.

Hive Express brings Stellar Lifestyle closer to its vision of a high-tech retail ecosystem by creating innovation spaces across Singapore’s rail network. By reimagining the use of open areas in SMRT-operated MRT stations, the company plans to introduce innovative retail concepts like smart vending machines and self-service checkout stores to more stations across the city.

Tony Heng, president of Stellar Lifestyle, said, “Building on the success of Hive 2.0, Hive Express creates even more opportunities for SMEs to innovate and test retail concepts within train stations. By harnessing new technologies and SMRT’s vast rail network, we can deliver unique retail experiences in compact spaces, enhancing convenience and enriching the daily journeys of commuters. Hive Express reflects Stellar Lifestyle’s commitment to designing dynamic, future-ready environments that serve both commuters and small businesses alike.”

At its launch, Hive Express will showcase its first partner, online supermarket RedMart. RedMart’s debut physical store at Raffles Place MRT will offer a curated selection of daily essentials for busy office workers and commuters. Shoppers can access these products at competitive prices through vending machines integrated with Lazada’s app. 

Customers can make payments through the app, and the vending machine will instantly dispense their selected products, seamlessly combining the convenience of online shopping with the immediacy of an in-store experience.

RedMart’s vending machine store, the first of its kind by a grocer in Singapore, will operate daily, offering commuters a wide range of products, including beverages, snacks, and personal care items. The selection is tailored to the needs of Raffles Place MRT commuters, providing quick access to essentials like drinks, workout fuel, and personal care products. Shoppers can also explore RedMart’s affordable private label items, including kombucha, trail mix, drinking water, and exclusive samples like the viral MONDAY haircare line.

Martin Daney, head of RedMart at Lazada Singapore, commented, “We understand that consumers on the go are looking for both online and offline touchpoints for greater convenience. We are delighted to partner with Stellar Lifestyle to expand RedMart’s presence beyond the Lazada app to give consumers a taste of the wide range of products that we offer. We want to help busy commuters save time by seamlessly integrating grocery shopping into their daily commute while providing a wide assortment with competitive prices.”

Singapore – In a developing story, some Lazada top executives are reportedly among those affected by the company’s retrenchment exercises as the layoffs expand to its other markets in Southeast Asia, The Edge Singapore reported.

According to people familiar with the matter, Lazada has let go of its chief marketing officers across the various countries it serves. Among the C-suite executives affected by the retrenchment was Brigitte Daubry, its chief customer care officer at Lazada Singapore. 

The e-commerce company has also allegedly laid off a fifth of its employees in its Malaysia branch, including its chief executive officer and its chief logistics officer. Currently, there are no updates on the positions of the following top executives in their LinkedIn profiles.

Additionally, reports also said that Lazada had shut down the operations of its LazMall in Vietnam.

These fresh rounds of reported layoffs join the undisclosed number of employees that were included in Lazada Singapore’s retrenchment exercises on January 3.

Lazada Singapore, the first branch to suffer from the sudden mass layoff, is unionised under the Food, Drinks, and Allied Workers Union (FDAWU), which is an affiliated union of the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC).

In a statement issued by NTUC to Singaporean press and news sites, it expressed its disappointment in the matter and said that it had escalated the matter to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM).

“NTUC would like to reiterate that it is critical for companies to work with their union to ensure that a fair and equitable process is carried out to safeguard the interests of all workers, especially our Singaporean core,” NTUC said in a statement.

Furthermore, NTUC stated that “companies must exhaust all other options before making the call to retrench employees. (NTUC) also appeals to companies to be considerate about the timing of such exercises and to avoid doing such exercises during festive periods, as far as possible.”

Singapore – E-commerce company Lazada, a subsidiary of Alibaba Group, faces staff reductions in its Singapore office amidst the 2024 new year transition, The Edge Singapore reported.

An employee familiar with the matter has revealed that senior and junior employees from multiple departments, including those from commercial and marketing teams, had received individual calendar meeting invites from the company’s human resources department at the end of the January 2 workday.

The anonymous employee further revealed that the layoffs, which began on January 3, are speculated to last until January 5, as the HR department has reserved all meeting rooms until the end of the week.

Additionally, Lazada Singapore has also been operating without an in-house communications department since last year.

Currently, there is no exact number as to how many employees have been laid off from the company’s Singapore unit.

The reports of layoffs come months after Lazada Singapore’s former CEO, Loh Wee Lee, left the company in August 2023. He has since been replaced by Jason Chen, who also serves as the group chief business officer at Lazada.

Singapore – Procter and Gamble (P&G) has announced a partnership with regional e-commerce giant Lazada to launch a personalised haircare microsite called ‘#HairDNA’, which aims to solve consumers’ biggest hair queries via expert advice available on the platform.

The microsite will serve as a one-stop-shop for consumers looking to switch up their haircare routine and find new products at the best deals with ease. With this venture, the company aims to establish itself as a thought leader and frontrunner in the haircare category. 

‘#HairDNA’ will also help P&G foster a closer relationship with its consumers through personalising the experience and increasing the segment of one-to-one interaction, all while driving higher penetration for its premium beauty segment.

Moreover, it will also help shoppers discover their hair needs and receive personalized recommendations for the best products and regimens. Consumers can get personalized product recommendations that solves a variety of hair problems through a series of quiz-like questions.

The interactive platform will then analyse the responses and offer customised advice, including tailored haircare tips and recommendations on the product regimen comprising shampoos, conditioners, as well as treatments from brands under the P&G ambit. Currently, these include Head & Shoulders, Pantene, Herbal Essences, and Rejoice which are available on Lazada via P&G’s official LazMall flagship store.

Commenting on the launch of #HairDNA, Ajit Nayak, senior vice president for APAC, of haircare at P&G, said, “P&G is proud to partner with Lazada in launching #HairDNA, delivering personalized haircare solutions, cementing our commitment to driving category growth and delivering the best possible haircare experience.”

Meanwhile, Moran Lucy, senior director for e-commerce sales for Asia-Pacific, Middle East, and Africa at P&G, commented, “With a wide repertoire of beauty choices online, as P&G, we want to be able to streamline the shopping process for our eCommerce shoppers, in an easy and interactive way to understand their problems and provide quality recommendations from our brands. With #HairDNA, we are step-changing the way Lazada shoppers can find the right haircare products that suit each of their personalised hair types. This is the first of many partnerships with Lazada that we will embark on together to deliver a great shopping experience for our shoppers.”

Lastly, Regina Toh, senior vice president of regional strategic accounts (FMCG) at Lazada Group, stated, “With increasing numbers of beauty shoppers on our LazBeauty channel, haircare products have regularly been hot favourites with our shoppers, thanks to the great deals and an engaging online shopping experience that we provide. Lazada is delighted to drive the beauty category further with leading P&G brands – from sampling to full hair regime exploration – via #HairDNA, and to leverage the power of data and technology to provide personalised recommendations to consumers across Southeast Asia.”

Singapore – Regional e-commerce platform Lazada has recently released ‘LazzieChat’, its own e-commerce chatbot powered by artificial intelligence (AI). Said chatbot can answer users’ shopping queries on the Lazada platform to provide personalised shopping experience for users.

Said chatbot, a first of its kind in Southeast Asia, can intelligently respond to users’ questions and acts as personal shopper, providing personalised suggestions and product recommendations to help users optimise their shopping experience.

‘LazzieChat’ leverages Lazada’s own AI technology and platform, complemented by the natural language capabilities of Azure OpenAI Service. It can understand and respond to queries in a natural manner, and suggest relevant products or topics that may interest the user. It can also look up product descriptions and link products available on Lazada directly in the chat console so users can be informed and shop quickly and conveniently with confidence.

Moreover, the platform notes that ‘LazzieChat’ is most useful for fast-moving consumer goods categories such as fashion and beauty which are among the top items purchased on Lazada.

The chatbot is available in English in Singapore, the Philippines, and Indonesia markets, with the latter also receiving a Bahasa Indonesia version. More languages will be rolled out in due course.

Howard Wang, chief technology officer at Lazada Group, said, “Lazada is one of the first Southeast Asian e-commerce companies to integrate ChatGPT in Azure OpenAI Service into our chatbot. We are pleased to provide our users with LazzieChat as part of our continuous investment in technology to build a high-quality digital ecosystem that is set up for long-term growth.”

He added, “Online shopping journeys are becoming more dynamic with the help of technology. We want to bridge the gap between offline and online shopping by providing high-quality experiences that consumers love, and create value for brands and sellers who can tap into new technologies to reach out to a wider audience. We are confident AI will drive new developments in making online shopping and selling a seamless daily activity for everyone.”

Manila, Philippines – ShopBack Philippines has recently concluded its first-ever Users’ Choice Awards event last 30 March at Fairmont Makati. The physical gathering was the culminating event of the rewards platform’s voting exercise which lasted for the whole month of March where users got to vote for their most favourite brands on the platform. 

In the in-person event, more than 100 merchant partners and media attended the night filled with fruitful discussions and celebrations. Awards granted included the Trendsetters’ Choice, Smart Shoppers’ Choice, Foodies’ Choice, and Mommie’s Choice, amongst many others.

 Prashant Kala, the GM of ShopBack Ads APAC and acting country manager for the PH market.

More than 200,000 votes were garnered during the campaign period and winners were determined based on the number of votes received, the number of users who visited the merchant online via the ShopBack app, and the number of bookmarks via the Watchlist feature.

Here were the full list of winners: 

  • Smart Shoppers’ Choice (Marketplaces category): Lazada
  • Trendsetters’ Choice (Fashion category): Zalora
  • Foodies’ Choice (Food and Grocery category): Foodpanda 
  • Mommie’s Choice (Mom and Baby category): Edamama 
  • Revenge Travelers’s Choice (Travel category): Agoda 
  • Glow Getters’ Choice (Health and Beauty category): Shopee
  • Fitness Junkies’ Choice (Sports and Fitness category): Nike
  • Tech Savvy’s Choice (Tech category): Samsung
  • Supefans’ Choice (Brand loyalists category): Adidas 
  • Top New Merchant: SHEIN
  • Brand Trailblazer Special Award: Lazada
  • Local Groundbreaker Special Award: Edamama and Metromart 

ShopBack opened the in-person event with a look back at 2022. Timothy Tuason, commercial director for ShopBack Philippines, emphasised the high conversion data in the platform which pushed for tangible business results for its merchant partners. 

The brand also teased what’s to come this 2023 and the highlights included were optimisations on its newly launched search ads and livestream features, an upcoming podcast series, and its 8th birthday celebration this June. 

Nishant D’Souza, Edamama Co-Founder, then provided a keynote presentation on the topic of how to make a flourishing Filipino start-up, sharing Edamama’s journey to becoming one of the top shopping apps in the country. 

ShopBack also invited other merchant partners for a fireside chat to talk about the synergy of growth and profitability. The discussions touched on the need to constantly adjust strategies in the ever-changing macro environment. The speaker line-up included:

  • Ricardo Ortuoste – Head of User Growth, Lazada Philippines
  • Amer Bakshi – Head of Strategic Partnerships, Foodpanda Philippines
  • Cris Tan – Marketing Director, Zalora Philippines
  • Nathalie Salcedo – Growth Lead, Metromart Philippines

“We are happy to spend this night with our esteemed partners as a way to show our gratitude for a great 2022. More exciting things are coming ahead this 2023 and looking forward to strengthening our partnerships with all of you,” Tuason shared. 

Last 17 March, ShopBack Philippines also launched yet another media gathering to mark the start of the summer season. In partnership with Zalora, the platform kicked off the season with ‘Summer Playground’, a lifestyle event that gathered KOLs and media as well as the platform’s key partners.

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – TNG Digital, owner and operator of Touch ‘n Go eWallet, has raised RM750m from its latest equity funding, which will be used to expand its digital financial services.

The equity funding was made through an investment by the Lazada Group, as well as from its parent company Touch ‘n Go Group. This new investment solidifies the collaboration between key segment leaders, one in e-commerce and one in digital financial services and payments.

Effendy Shahul Hamid, group chief executive officer at Touch ‘n Go Group, said, “I’m extremely pleased to welcome Lazada to the Touch ‘n Go eWallet family. We feel this collaboration will bring next-level value propositions to users and merchant bases across the Lazada and Touch ‘n Go ecosystem. I look forward to seeing the teams roll out these exciting collaboration opportunities to our users.”

Meanwhile, Alan Chan, chief executive officer at Lazada Malaysia, commented, “We see digital payment services as a critical bolt-on to bring the best customer experience on Lazada. Lazada is fully committed to providing a seamless customer journey, as well as being a catalyst to stimulate capacity building among our sellers, primarily local SMEs and MSMEs.” 

He added, “Our long-standing partnership with Touch ‘n Go eWallet has served our customers well, allowing buyers to check out easily and quickly. Today’s announcement fortifies that partnership and we are excited by the prospects it presents for both our companies.”