Daraz 11.11 Sale to set benchmark for online retail industry

Leading e-commerce marketplace, Daraz.lk is geared to bring 11.11 Sale for the second year to Sri Lanka. Termed ‘the largest online sale in the world’, 11.11 Sale offers the best deals and prices that one can get for a wide range of products online. Speaking about introducing this event and the growth of Daraz to be capable of hosting an event of such magnitude is Daraz Lanka Managing Director Rakhil Fernando.

Q: How ready is Daraz to take on the challenge of hosting 11.11 Sale?
Daraz introduced 11.11 Sale to Sri Lanka last year, as one of our key sales. We have always tried to bring in the excitement and experience that is present globally, to Sri Lanka. We have been able to do this through our affiliation with Alibaba. Daraz celebrated three years of operations in Sri Lanka last month and looking back we can see the magnanimous growth the company has gained, as well as the valuable contribution Daraz has made to the online retail industry. Since last year, we have ensured that we have extended our capacities in all areas; our seller community has grown from 8,000 sellers last year to almost 26,000 and growing this year. as for products, we have around 700,000 live products at present catering to approximately 200,000 orders per month. As such, we believe we are probably the largest online market and that makes us competent to host something as big as the 11.11 Sale.

Q: What can the customers look forward to during 11.11 deals this year?
The Daraz team has been working extensively to get partners on board in order to provide the best options and deals for the shoppers. Unilever is our Platinum partner for 11.11, and we have brands such as Samsung, Browns & Company PLC, Reckitt Benckiser, Vantage, HP and Avirate joining Daraz, to name a few. Customers will enjoy one of a kind deals and discounts such as up to 80 percent with popular fashion brands, the latest mobile phones that are exclusively available on Daraz, more than 70 percent off on FMCG products to name a few.
In addition, we have Sampath Bank, Commercial Bank, HNB, HSBC, NDB, Seylan Bank, Bank of Ceylon and People’s Bank partnering 11.11. Overall, Daraz 11.11. will be an unforgettable shopping experience for online shopping in Sri Lanka.

Q: How has 11.11 Sale helped Daraz and the sellers?
For us at Daraz, 11.11 Sale has always been our own benchmark. We prepare for it from the previous year, identifying areas of improvement, innovating, and strengthening all our processes that are involved in 11.11 Sale. We push ourselves beyond our limits, because the Daraz DNA is that we do not stop at the possible. The excitement internally, when we prepare for the sale is very palpable and it drives all of us to perform outside our limits.

As for our seller community, 11.11 Sale obviously gives them an opportunity to be a part of the global frenzy. It creates a platform for them to push their brands in very innovative ways. The orders start coming from midnight of 10th November, but the back end has begun work already. Sellers can capitalise on both volume and price offerings, which they would not get at any time throughout the year.

Q: Apart from 11.11 Sale deals, Daraz has introduced many innovations and concepts to the e-commerce industry over the past three years. What is the impact the company has had on the overall sector? How has Daraz grown during this time?
Currently less than one percent of the ten-billion-dollar Sri Lankan retail market is online. This number is expected to grow significantly to about four percent in the next three years, and we want to be the agents who drive this improvement. Daraz has been instrumental in introducing innovative online promotions, bringing down globally proven technology, building trust and developing the sellers who are the backbone of the platform, and within this we have creative concepts that target different markets. For instance, the Daraz Mall concept that consists of branded stores, the Global Collection with its assortment of global brands, Daraz Corporate for bulk purchasing and dMart for FMCG products are a few innovative expansions available for shoppers on Daraz.

Furthermore, with an expanded warehouse and sorting centres, Daraz’s logistics arm DEX is capable of handling three times the volume than a year before. New logistic hubs in Jaffna, Badulla, Ampara, Batticaloa and Kegalle, in addition to Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa, which will be opened soon, have enabled a wider reach for Daraz to tap into sellers and buyers operating away from Colombo. Through this we are focusing on increasing our seller drop-off and customer pick-up locations across the country, as well as doubling our sorting capacity from 7,500 to 15,000 packages per day. Also, Daraz Stores is our way of tapping the offline market through Daraz branded shops, which will initiate a change in retail consumers and build trust towards e-commerce.

Q: What defines Daraz from other e-commerce platforms?
We differentiate ourselves as an ‘online marketplace’ where the sellers are given the freedom to create and develop their own stores. Daraz provides the back-end infrastructure, technology, logistic services, and most importantly, the marketing and promotional activities for the sellers. Not stopping there, we develop our seller community, travelling all across the country, educating and training them on e-commerce, helping them to set up store and enrolling them on Daraz University where they can learn the complete process of selling successfully through e-commerce.

With all this in place, we are confident that this 11.11 will be an unforgettable experience for bot our shoppers and sellers.