Despite the fact that the numbers of infections and deaths from the coronavirus pandemic continue to be very high throughout Latin America, future developments indicate that it will be possible to control it as the months progress. There is no doubt that the coronavirus has forced changes of great impact in the daily lives of all citizens. In turn, for about a year they have introduced consumption dynamics that have nothing to do with those that had been taking place until the central months of 2020. mobility restrictions and confinements caused people to stop buying the same products as before or, if they continued to do so, to opt for the via consumer electronics, the only one possible in many cases and the safest to avoid contagion.
Challenges at the logistics level after the ecommerce explosion
Santiago Navarro, president for Latin America of the collaborative commerce platform VTEX, points out that electronic commerce has gone in a few months of months from being little more than a fad to something vital for any economy. In some companies the proportion of online sales went from 5% to 80% in a matter of weeks, which forced these organizations to face important changes at the logistical level. Sergio Pérez, executive director of corporate accounts in Latin America of the consultancy Newmark, offers an interesting fact, one in three products sold through e-commerce is returned. This is important economically because some of these products have no salvage value and because many companies have been forced to greatly strengthen its logistics system, to cope with the high demand.
The future within the logistics sector is to develop storage spaces that offer a high level of efficiency in the quality-time-response combo, and that all this goes hand in hand with cost savings and good customer service.
Physical establishments as transaction spaces
Navarro does not trust that the extensive growth of ecommerce will make the physical trade, but it does affect the idea of transform these spaces into places of high added value.
Thus, stores can combine electronic commerce with physical commerce and have their facilities serve as point of support, customer reception and as a place to experience a greater degree of commitment between consumers and the establishment itself. In turn, this growth in electronic commerce does not necessarily entail the loss of small establishments. Small retailers can find in the combination between ecommerce and physical stores that scenario that large monopolies like Amazon and Mercado Libre do not reach. It is impossible to compete in sales or billing with giants like Ebay, but it does not always have the opportunity to have delivery points within walking distance of customers, as if you can have a small retailer well established in the territory.
The challenge of reaching customers, and that customers reach online stores
Beyond the logistics and storage problems, another relevant issue is that of the companies themselves to adapt to this new reality that is so digitized and globalized. Thousands of companies have had to start a conversion process that they were parking for years.
Despite the fact that ecommerce grew progressively until the arrival of Covid 19, it was the pandemic that catapulted it as a really important sales channel. Many companies have had to get down to business and go to Ecommerce services that allow them to be attractive to customers. If all the competition is on the internet, you have to look for formulas that attract customers. On the other hand, the issue of the digital divide continues to be very present, since tens of millions of people in the region still do not have a affordable, safe and quality internet access, which greatly reduces the possibilities of development of that community. In this situation, the challenges facing electronic commerce are very varied but exciting. There is only one clear certainty, ecommerce has come to stay.
Despite the fact that the numbers of infections and deaths from the coronavirus pandemic continue to be very high throughout Latin America, future developments indicate that it will be possible to control it as the months progress. There is no doubt that the coronavirus has forced changes of great impact in the daily lives of all citizens. In turn, for about a year they have introduced consumption dynamics that have nothing to do with those that had been taking place until the central months of 2020. mobility restrictions and confinements caused people to stop buying the same products as before or, if they continued to do so, to opt for the via consumer electronics, the only one possible in many cases and the safest to avoid contagion.
Challenges at the logistics level after the ecommerce explosion
Santiago Navarro, president for Latin America of the collaborative commerce platform VTEX, points out that electronic commerce has gone in a few months of months from being little more than a fad to something vital for any economy. In some companies the proportion of online sales went from 5% to 80% in a matter of weeks, which forced these organizations to face important changes at the logistical level. Sergio Pérez, executive director of corporate accounts in Latin America of the consultancy Newmark, offers an interesting fact, one in three products sold through e-commerce is returned. This is important economically because some of these products have no salvage value and because many companies have been forced to greatly strengthen its logistics system, to cope with the high demand.
The future within the logistics sector is to develop storage spaces that offer a high level of efficiency in the quality-time-response combo, and that all this goes hand in hand with cost savings and good customer service.
Physical establishments as transaction spaces
Navarro does not trust that the extensive growth of ecommerce will make the physical trade, but it does affect the idea of transform these spaces into places of high added value.
Thus, stores can combine electronic commerce with physical commerce and have their facilities serve as point of support, customer reception and as a place to experience a greater degree of commitment between consumers and the establishment itself. In turn, this growth in electronic commerce does not necessarily entail the loss of small establishments. Small retailers can find in the combination between ecommerce and physical stores that scenario that large monopolies like Amazon and Mercado Libre do not reach. It is impossible to compete in sales or billing with giants like Ebay, but it does not always have the opportunity to have delivery points within walking distance of customers, as if you can have a small retailer well established in the territory.
The challenge of reaching customers, and that customers reach online stores
Beyond the logistics and storage problems, another relevant issue is that of the companies themselves to adapt to this new reality that is so digitized and globalized. Thousands of companies have had to start a conversion process that they were parking for years.
Despite the fact that ecommerce grew progressively until the arrival of Covid 19, it was the pandemic that catapulted it as a really important sales channel. Many companies have had to get down to business and go to Ecommerce services that allow them to be attractive to customers. If all the competition is on the internet, you have to look for formulas that attract customers. On the other hand, the issue of the digital divide continues to be very present, since tens of millions of people in the region still do not have a affordable, safe and quality internet access, which greatly reduces the possibilities of development of that community. In this situation, the challenges facing electronic commerce are very varied but exciting. There is only one clear certainty, ecommerce has come to stay.