E-commerce platform, Lazada Malaysia, has channelled approximately RM44 million with the goal of helping more than 70,000 SMEs through its second stimulus package; dubbed Pakej Kedai Pintar 2.0.
Lazada’s first stimulus package was implemented in April 2020, contributing RM10 million to help up to 50,000 SMEs. This new package is designed to help SMEs stay afloat amidst the second movement control order (MCO) situation than has recently been implemented in Malaysia in an attempt to contain the spread of a resurgent Covid-19 pandemic. Businesses will be allowed to sign up for the package from now util 28 February 2021.
Lazada Malaysia chief business officer Sherry Tan said the stimulus package is introduced to address business pain points and provide efficient solutions with subsidies and bonus exposures to boost SMEs’ sales online.
The package is set to have multiple benefits for sellers, both new or pre-existing, and includes perks such as a 0 percent commission rate, waved payment fees, 90 days of dedicated store-building support, Lazada University training, subsidised advertising credits for sponsored search, and free product exposure slots on Lazada Flash Sales.
“After we launched the first Pakej Kedai Pintar stimulus package during the MCO last year, local SMEs on our platform generated more than double the sales. The impact of the initiative also goes beyond short-term digital adoption, but also for long-term sustainability and growth as we drive the end-to-end digital transformation of entrepreneurs,” Tan said.
Tan said the Pakej Kedai Pintar 2.0 could help SMEs diversify their revenue streams from brick-and-mortar stores to e-commerce without incurring additional capital costs.
“With more than one in three Malaysians shopping on the Lazada app every month, we are able to leverage our strong consumer base to help local SMEs ‘MCO-proof’ their business, and in the meantime, enable them to retain job stability for their employees,” she added.
E-commerce has seen rapid growth over the past few years, and the pandemic has only served to accelerate that growth further, as digital fluency and reliance skyrockets. The effort being shown by e-commerce businesses to support local SMEs is one of the optimistic outcomes for the future in a post pandemic environment.
