Pakistan’s M-Commerce Market Reaches Rs 15 Billion Mark

Pakistan’s M-Commerce Market Reaches Rs 15 Billion Mark

The evolving market landscape, with a deeper penetration of computers and mobile phones, has positioned Pakistan well to catch up with the global trend. Currently, the size of the e-commerce market is projected at about Rs3.1bn, whereas m-commerce has hit the Rs15bn mark.

Investors are betting on the tech-savvy millennials (age group 13-30), and the marketers on 3/4G technologies, as game chan¬gers for the e- and m-commerce in the country.

• According to Internet Service Providers Association of Pakistan (ISPAP): There are 25m internet and 15m smartphone users in Pakistan
• According to the Economic Survey 2012-13: 13.5pc and 8.1pc respectively of the 184.35m population

The global investors are intrigued by the reported volume of consumer spending, growth in mobile phone usage, stellar performance of multinational companies (Unilever, P&G, Nestle, Suzuki, Toyota, China Mobile, Telenor etc) and the success of global brands (Nike, Adidas, McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Levis, Mango, Ego, Next etc).

They find the ISPAP data understating the facts. Their research projects the number of online Pakistanis close to 40m — over one-fifth of the total population. Some others, however, believe that 90m people are active online.

Market watchers also see yet another peculiar trend in Pakistan because m-commerce has picked up faster than e-commerce. This is all because of the fund transfer facilities [Easypaisa, Timepey, Mobicash etc] provided by telcos, ordinary citezens have been provided a viable solution for their needs. However, online transactions have yet to move beyond utility bill payments in a big way.

Muneeb Maayr, Co-founder of Daraz.pk, said:
[pull_quote_center]Based on our experience and an assessment of the customer’s profile, I firmly believe that the market is on the cusp of a change here, and will alter radically over the next decade. We hope to pitch in our bit and capitalise on the transformation by taking a lead in adjusting to the evolving market[/pull_quote_center]

Muntazir Haider, Chief Marketing Officer of Foodpanda, said:
[pull_quote_center]Based on our experience and an assessment of the customer’s profile, I firmly believe that the market is on the cusp of a change here, and will alter radically over the next decade. We hope to pitch in our bit and capitalise on the transformation by taking a lead in adjusting to the evolving market[/pull_quote_center]

Some other dotcom startups in specialised segments have recently introduced the facility of online payment in addition to cash on delivery. They have forged a relationship with banks to offer the facility.

The potential of growth in e- and m-commerce has also caught the attention of Rocket Internet, a renowned e-commerce-focused venture capital company. Rocket currently supports six businesses in the country: Carmundi (online car dealers), Daraz, Easy Taxi, Foodpanda, kaymu.pk (marketplace) and Lamundi (realtors).

Online retail is not new to Pakistan, but its scale has changed. It started about two-and-a-half decades back in the book retail sector, followed by logistical companies. However, till five years back, its coverage was limited to a narrow segment of society.

Pakistan is a happening place that investors follow with interest