Shopee: E-Commerce Provides New Income Opportunities Amidst Economic Challenges

Alex Cheong Pui Yin

28th October 2020 - 3 min read

A recent survey carried out by e-commerce Shopee has revealed that e-commerce is providing new income opportunities for Malaysians amidst rising economic challenges. This comes as Shopee prepares for one of its biggest sale festivals of the year, the Shopee 11.11 Big Sale.

Conducted among 11,850 Malaysian sellers, Shopee’s survey found that e-commerce is creating opportunities for all aspiring entrepreneurs – irrespective of gender, geography, and age. Of the respondents surveyed, 5,406 of them are found to be new entrepreneurs who operated their businesses fully online. The survey also revealed the following about these new entrepreneurs:

72% of them are women entrepreneurs, offering mainly health and beauty products, women’s clothing, as well as fashion accessories. This group is able to generate an average of RM3,950 each month.
70.7% of them fall between the age bracket of 18 to 35, with one in three of them being Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) certificate holders. This group dabbles with a variety of products – including children and Muslim fashion, groceries, and kids-related products – and can earn an average of RM6,000 each month.
13.3% of them are entrepreneurs from rural areas, coming from places as far as Pontian (Johor), Kuala Nerus (Terengganu), and Kabong (Sarawak). This group is driven primarily by younger women, and focuses on hometown specialties such as keropok lekor, belacan, and kek lapis. The average monthly income for these sellers stands at RM3,200.

On top of that, Shopee’s survey noted that 70% of its respondents have up to six dependents. As such, 35.4% of them have turned to e-commerce for another source of household income despite being fully employed individuals. On average, they are able to make about RM2,750 per month just by selling on Shopee.

Another finding to highlight in Shopee’s survey is the ripple effect that e-commerce has created in terms of increasing the employment rate among Malaysians. As many as 1,700 of survey respondents said that they employ full- and part-time employees to cope with the rising demand from their customers.

“The survey findings show that e-commerce provides equal opportunity for all to make a mark online. While e-commerce helps to better livelihoods, this also goes to show that e-commerce can play a larger role in shaping the modern workforce,” said the regional managing director of Shopee, Ian Ho.

With November just around the corner, Shopee is also gearing up to kickstart its 11.11 Big Sale – which is viewed as a major opportunity by many sellers. In fact, 66.7% of the survey respondents said that they are doubling their inventory for the event, whereas 70.2% anticipate at least 100% growth in sales. Some sellers are even projecting a five-fold increase during the sale festival.

Shopee’s 11.11 Big Sale will see the e-commerce platform offering various bargains and perks, such as Shocking Sale deals, daily free shipping with a minimum spend of RM11, as well as daily discount vouchers. Shopee is also focusing on creating shared experiences through entertainment, such as by airing the 11.11 Big Show on 11 November. Additionally, it will run its first regional charity drive, dubbed the 11.11 Big Charity, to uplift local communities.

You can find out more about Shopee’s upcoming 11.11 Big Sale on its website here.

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Alex Cheong Pui Yin

Previously covered recruitment-related stories and had a short stint as a copywriter for the property industry. She subsequently developed an interest in investment and robo-advisors.

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