“If you look at what has changed in the last few years there are about half a dozen factors that have come together to drive e-commerce,” said Dr. Adrian Vanzyl, CEO at Ardent Capital.
Vanzyl, who spent the majority of his career in Silicon Valley in venture-backed startups, identified e-commerce as a continuously growing trend in Thailand and the rest of Southeast Asia with potential.
During our meeting, Vanzyl identified changes that have driven e-commerce in the region recently: increased smart phone penetration, mobile broadband and social networking, as well as growth in online banking, logistics and capital investment.
Comprised of entrepreneurs with experience of successful ventures globally, Ardent Capital provides one-stop-shop e-retail services for companies reaching out to the Southeast Asian market of 600 million people through its subsidiary, aCommerce. Established two years ago, it currently has a client roster of 150 companies - a third of which are made up of global brands like HP, Nestle and L’Oreal.
He said: “This region has great potential. Models need to be localized for legal hurdles. We will have more people online in Southeast Asia than the entire population of the U.S. by the end of next year. The opportunity is definitely there.”
Ardent Capital has a customer base in prospects in sourcing, fulfillment, retail, demand generation and payment gateways, as well as other investments across various sectors.
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“Thailand is a very strong market because it’s on the way up. You often see a lot of people using mobile phones and applications,” said Chulayuth Lochotinan, Managing Director at MoneyGuru.
Thailand, like many places in Southeast Asia has seen a surge in the number of consumers using mobile Internet.
Lochotinan, whose past work experience includes business development, strategy and operation at EY, Thomson Reuters and Deloitte, said MoneyGuru wants to become a household name for all things related to personal finance.
As Managing Director and Country Manager of MoneyGuru in Thailand, Lochotinan is steering the company towards becoming the leading portal for comparing products and services in the automotive and financial sectors.
Lochotinan believes that Thailand is a very attractive place to conduct business because its residents have become increasingly open to the digital economy.
He said: “We have partnerships with insurance companies and banks. It’s going well as there’s a growth in this industry in Thailand. People compare websites before they decide to buy something.”
MoneyGuru belongs to the Compare Asia Group, which runs a network of comparison portals across Asia, particularly in Hong Kong, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Taiwan.
