Rakuten Indonesia Talks About the Indonesian E-Commerce Scene

The president director and CEO of Rakuten Indonesia, Rio Inaba spoke to Detik yesterday about Indonesia’s e-commerce scene, and shared a number of facts and figures about the industry and his company. Here is just some of the information he shared:

• Last year, 90 percent of transactions occurred in Jakarta. This year Jakarta only accounts for 55 percent, with the rest coming from outside the capital city.
• Based on gender, males still dominate among e-commerce customers, representing 65 percent. 49 percent of the customers are aged 20 to 29 years old.
• The e-commerce business share is still less than one percent compared to traditional offline businesses.

Rio concluded that there are good developments happening in other Indonesian regions, and that internet access is better spread and that people’s buying power is strong. He noted that what makes Rakuten different from its competitors in Indonesia is its positioning as a multinational e-commerce player. Rakuten is supported by many stakeholders including the Japanese government and its Indonesian business partners.

Rio explained that Rakuten’s membership has increased four-fold, and its total transaction value has grown by a factor of six. Its rate of transactions during the Lebaran holiday was also much better compared to last year.

Interestingly, Rakuten Indonesia also plans to focus on selling food and beverages online. At the moment the company has tied up deals with food vendors such as First Love Cake, Kato Coffee, and Kondo Rice. So far they sell food and beverages only in the Jakarta area.

[Source: Detik]