Two fresh market operators — Yingcharoen in Saphan Mai and Number One in Bang Na — are ramping up their online shopping channels in an effort to stay afloat after traffic plummeted at their fresh markets because of the viral outbreak.
Yingcharoen fresh market reintroduced online shopping for customers two weeks ago after pausing online services eight months ago because of fierce competition, shifting focus to business customers.
It has 33 different fresh items including meat, vegetables and seasonings.
“With malls and restaurants closed since March 22, purchase orders from business customers declined by 28%. We resumed our online shopping for customers two weeks ago,” said Ariya Tumwattana, chief operations officer at Suwapee Holding Co, the operator of Yingcharoen.
Demand is relatively high, with 40-50 orders on weekdays and up to 100 orders on the weekend. Orders per bill total about 1,000 baht, up from 800 baht in the past.
“We don’t know when the coronavirus pandemic is going to end, but we believe after it does, customers will become more cautious about their spending. However, we will still move to adopt the online channel to keep abreast of changes in customers’ lifestyle,” he said.
The company has recruited more staff to support its online shopping expansion.
To make online shopping easier for management, the company reduced the number of products available to 200 items from 800, supplied from 128 registered merchants.
Customers can shop online via its website www.songsod.com and Line “@songsod” every day between 7am and 5pm. Delivery service is available across Bangkok, with a delivery fee of seven baht per kilometre.
“Online shopping will help both us and merchants survive together during this most difficult time,” Mr Ariya said. – Bangkok Post
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