E-commerce thrives due to Covid-19 threat
Covid-19 might have caused tourism to plunge, but it has paved the way for e-commerce to flourish as consumers switch to online channels to buy products and services and refrain from going to crowded spaces to avoid the virus risk.
Thanawat Malabuppha, president of Thailand e-Commerce Association and CEO and co-founder of Priceza, a popular e-commerce hub in Thailand, said that sales of online products because of the outbreak had almost doubled especially in product groups related to protection against the virus. “The search for the keyword ‘sanitary face masks’ increased by 3,500 per cent in February 2020 compared to the same period in 2019,” he said. “Other products are also seeing improved sales as people tend to avoid going out to shopping centres and retail shops. Daily consumer products and healthcare-related products are among the groups that are having the highest sales through the e-commerce channel.”
Meanwhile, Pinya Nittayakasetwat, CEO of GET application, has said that the food delivery business in Thailand in 2020 could grow by 31 per cent with total value of more than Bt1.8 billion. “In the past 12 months, GET app has seen more than 2.2 million downloads while over 40,000 delivery staff have joined our fleet,” he said. “The worries about PM2.5 air pollution and virus outbreak have significantly driven up the orders via GET application, while we continue to promote the trend by adding more discounts and promotions for delivery services to attract new users.”
“The Covid-19 situation has also made food delivery operators more mindful of food safety and sanitation,” added Pinya “We have provided all delivery staff with hand gel and face masks, instructed them to take care of and monitor their health closely, as well as make sure that restaurants use sealed packaging for all food products to increase customer confidence in our services.”