Can Coupang out-Amazon Amazon in Southeast Asia?

“How did I ever live without Coupang?”

That is the dazzling mission statement of South Korea’s most valuable tech startup – a motto that seems more applicable to the country’s legacy conglomerate, Samsung, rather than a 11-year-old tech venture.

The aspiration underscores Coupang’s customer-centric obsession, which has earned it the title “Amazon of South Korea.”

The company raised a whopping US$4.6 billion when it debuted on the New York Stock Exchange in March, making it the largest US listing of a foreign company since China’s Alibaba. Even the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation snapped up 5.71 million shares in the Seoul-based company at the time.

So why should Southeast Asia care about Coupang?

It’s because South Korea’s ecommerce star is reportedly looking to make inroads into the region, with a series of hirings in Singapore. Last year, it even acquired the digital assets of Singtel’s Hooq, which closed down in March 2020.

On June 17, just a couple of months after Coupang’s blockbuster stock market debut, founder and CEO Bom Kim resigned as chairman and director of Coupang Korea to focus on “global management” after the listing. However, Kim remains the CEO of US-listed Coupang Inc.

What does the company’s potential entry into Southeast Asia’s bustling ecommerce landscape mean for the industry, especially for the Shopee-Lazada race?

Coupang 101

But first, it’s important to get a handle on Coupang’s business model.

Established in 2010 by Bom Kim, a dropout from Harvard Business School, Coupang takes a leaf out of the Amazon playbook but adds a South Korean flair.

There are three words that have unique meanings within Coupang: rocket, wow, and dawn – all of which refer to its delivery services.

Controversies

Stepping out

Room for another big player?

Pulling a rabbit out of a hat