Redesigning retail through online tech: B2B marketplace links brands to physical retailers 

Only small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that deliver consumers seamless and fresh experiences will survive. Understanding customer needs, being relevant, and adopting innovative digital tools are key leading indicators for customer retention and long-term success - for both brands and storeowners. 
Shiftspace is a B2B online marketplace, where brand owners can search for the right retail space and offer their products to decision-makers in various locations within a few minutes. So, instead of wasting time and money on the survey, product owners can log on to a website (www.shiftspace.co.th) and reach targeted stores in just three simple steps: Seek for stores, scan through details, send product offer. Simply think of it as an Airbnb for retail shelf space!

The challenge of physical retail 
With over 10 years of experience in retail industry, the co-founder team has seen a lot of SME entrepreneurs suffer from product distribution. 
Due to the rise of e-commerce, many products might experience a rocketed increase in sales through Facebook, Instagram, etc. However, we also met a lot of people with decent new products, especially those in the food category, who experienced the opposite result. Why?
With questions raised, we started exploring and envisioning the future. Data from developed countries like the United States, we found that in 2016, brick-and-mortar retail accounts for 89 per cent of the US$5 trillion (Bt166.4 trillion) retail market. In addition to that, the rise of tourism also supports the importance of having a physical store. In the future, we believe a balance of omnichannel sales and the integration of online to offline (O2O) experience will support fragmented lifestyles and preferences. You might have already noticed this in the actions of online platforms like Alibaba and Amazon, which expanded their business to include physical retailers Tao Cafe, Amazon Go and Whole Foods. 
That's why we created our O2O platform with the mission to connect local brands to any retail spaces in the world. Through Shiftspace, brand owner and space owner can now refresh their customer's experiences with more related products and enjoy combined higher revenue. 

Benefits to both ends of retail chain
Both store owners with storefront and brand owners can benefit from an online marketplace.
Our previous product-owner customers include early-to-mid-stage brands. Apart from saving time and having to hire sales team, we provide various types of stores in many locations with customer data and revenue sharing details on the platform before making a product offer.
For the space owner, it's free of charge. They simply take photos of their stores from various perspectives and fill in key information. Any space with a storefront is welcome, whether a cafÈ, hostel, souvenir shop, restaurant, noodle shop, salon, co-working space or other operation. The higher the traffic, the higher the potential revenue gain.
A store owner thinking of improving ways to utilise their space or finding new products, or a brand owner getting tired of running around finding a physical selling space - both ends of the retail chain can benefit from a B2B online marketplace.

Wanich Jirachaisingh is co-founder and CBO of shiftspace (http://www.shiftspace.co.th) and DTAC Accelerate batch 5.