HCMC – Vietnamese small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are now able to approach e-commerce platforms to sell their goods to the Singapore market, which require lower costs than traditional distribution channels such as supermarkets and shopping centers, according to information provided at a seminar held in HCMC on Wednesday.
Currently, Singapore has traditional retail channels such as FairPrice, 7Eleven, ShengSiong, Giant, Watson, Isetan, BigBox, Cheers, Unity, Prime Supermarket, Cold Storage, Guardian, Yes Supermarket, Halal Market, U Stars Supermarket, Ang Mo Supermarket and Market Place.
Phan Phi Long, national director of Vietcham Singapore, said e-commerce is growing rapidly in Singapore, attracting many digital giants.
Aside from leading e-commerce platforms such as Amazon, e-Bay and Apple, other platforms such as Taobao, Qoo10, Lazada, Zalora, Carousell, Redmart, Reebonz, HipVan and Alibaba have reported positive revenues from suppliers and shoppers from all over the world.
Meanwhile, according to experts, shopping is popular in Singapore, with online shopping popular among youngsters and high-income families.
Around 60% of revenue earned by e-commerce channels in Singapore comes from overseas orders. Therefore, Vietnamese firms may access these platforms to introduce their products in Singapore and other international markets at affordable costs, Long said.
Moreover, Singapore is an island country with developed seaports and logistics services. It ranks first among the Southeast Asian countries for export-import revenue.
Currently, up to 21 of the 25 globally leading logistics service providers have their headquarters in Singapore. The country is also an important air transit center in Asia, especially Southeast Asia.
Singapore’s seaports are connected to 600 ports in 123 nations via some 200 shipping lines. Only 5% of shipments were consumed in the country and 95% were brought to other countries via global supply chains.
Phillip Phung, Indochina director of Vietcham Singapore, said the island country is generously open without any nontax barriers. It just applies popular international regulations such as OIE and Codex.
Therefore, Singapore is a highly potential market for Vietnamese SMEs and micro businesses. Tapping the market will allow local firms to promote their products worldwide.
However, Vietnamese enterprises should pay attention to product quality, design, packaging and English-use directions to meet international standards.
By Le Hoang
