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Live video shopping is the future of e-commerce. It is already a $170 billion market in China and $1 billion business in the U.S. and expected to grow exponentially in the coming years. In light of such a growth that ShopperON was launched in the UAE.
Co- founded by Sylvia Dequito and Osman Sultan, ShopperON is the first social commerce live video shopping marketplace platform in the UAE enabling individuals as live stream hosts and stores to create and host their own shopping channels on the platform. It is an interactive marketplace where shoppers can ask questions and the livestream host can answer it live with shoppable products on the screen where they can add to cart without leaving the live events. The platform provides a real time dashboard that enables stores and live stream hosts to track their sales and commissions in real- time. The physical shopping experience has been virtualised for the local and global consumer.
Chairman of Shopperon, Osman Sultan said, “This live video shopping platform is unlike any other online shopping experience to date. It is much more personalised, bringing sellers and shoppers together in real time, making it more an interactive event. For the consumer, it is akin to having a personal shopper and for the seller it affords the opportunity to directly connect with the customer, providing in-depth product descriptions, pricing and demonstrations, making the entire process feel much more personal. With statistically an estimated 2.14 billion shoppers online world-wide, it would have been folly not to have created ShopperON.”
The platform provides exposure opportunities for brands, wholesalers, warehouses and even retail events to showcase their products during live session to their customers. Influencers and sales people alike are encouraged to interact with the consumers and earn money thru commissions.
Coming out of the pandemic, a lot of retail businesses are looking for options to tap into new markets avoiding a large overhead or additional employees. And one way to survive in business you need to deliver a unique and valuable online experience, especially that consumers behavior changes dramatically because of the Covid-19. This is where we come up to a business idea to build a platform that can positively impact millions of people. Our platform will create transparency and authenticity as the buyers can ask and watch the item while the live stream host answering their question and shop in real time, anywhere they are. And according to Sylvia Dequito, CEO of ShopperON, it’s guaranteed, returns are 50% lower, when items are bought in livestream.
UAE has the highest smart phone penetration rate in the world of 83%, along with Saudi Arabia, which is not far behind at 68% (Source: Newzoo’s 2018 Global Mobile Market report). By simply downloading an app on a smart phone, potential customers have instant access to a multitude of options.
The e-commerce retail market in the Middle East & Africa is expected to grow by 20% in the next five years to reach USD26 billion in 2022, which outpaces the global growth of 13% smartphone usage reaches almost 100% among GCC millennials.
By side-stepping a traditional bricks and mortar shop, overheads are slashed, business is not geographically limited and recognised shopping times are irrelevant as ShopperON is available round-the-clock. Ease of shopping is a big draw. Customers can see what they want to order, make their purchase and have it delivered to their door. The ease and speed at which transactions are offered is a considerable attraction to this kind of shopping and as previously mentioned, growth is assured in the coming years.
One of the main reasons for online shopping has undoubtedly been the COVID 19 pandemic. Lockdowns and restrictions became the norm for many and this has left residual caution among shoppers. That has passed but the joy and ease of shopping from home, from your car or a restaurant in real time has become very popular. ShopperON transcends all uncertainties with its consumer-friendly, fast and uncomplicated live shopping platform.
