Shopee Korea, Selects 'N.E.W' as the Keyword for 2023 Annual Summary

Shopee Korea, the largest e-commerce platform in Southeast Asia and Taiwan (CEO Yuna Kwon, Shopee), announced on the 18th that they have selected 'N.E.W' as the summary keyword for Shopee Korea's activities in 2023, meaning 'new'.

The 2023 annual summary keyword 'N.E.W' for Shopee Korea stands for △Strength of new markets such as Vietnam, Thailand △Express delivery and enhanced return/refund services △Increased demand for various K-products (Want).

According to Shopee Korea, in the fourth quarter of last year, the number of orders for Shopee sellers increased by 65% compared to the fourth quarter of 2022, and the transaction amount increased by 38%. Emerging online markets showing steep growth, such as Vietnam and Thailand, are emerging as a blue ocean for Korean sellers, and the popularity of K-products has expanded into more categories in traditional strong markets like Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines.

Especially, despite the re-ignition of competition with offline channels along with the endemic, the growth rate of K-beauty, the largest category for Korean sellers, was at an all-time high. Shopee is reported to have effectively responded to local customers' desire for faster and safer product supply by offering a wider range of logistics options and improved return/refund services. Also, by focusing on sourcing a variety of products beyond beauty, they were able to respond to the diversified demands of local customers.

#Strength of New Markets like Vietnam, Thailand

In 2023, among all markets where Shopee operates, the emerging markets such as Thailand and Vietnam showed notable growth. Last year, the number of orders from Korean sellers on Shopee Thailand increased by 375% compared to the same period the previous year, with the transaction amount increasing by 354%. Thailand was particularly noted as the market with the highest order growth rate compared to the previous year's event during last year's '11.11 Mega Day' when orders for Korean products increased sevenfold.

Along with Thailand, the Vietnam market, emerging as a 'blue ocean' for K-sellers, saw a 149% increase in the number of orders and a 137% increase in transaction amounts last year. Earlier, Vietnam had recorded the highest number of orders and the second highest in sales during the '9.9 Mega Day', highlighting it as a rapidly growing market.

Thailand and Vietnam are continually growing in e-commerce market size. With the ongoing Hallyu wave, including K-content and K-pop, these markets are expected to have significant growth potential this year.#Providing Express Delivery and Return/Refund ServicesThe importance of delivery competitiveness is increasing in cross-border e-commerce. Accordingly, Shopee has expanded its logistics services to enable sellers to sell a variety of products more quickly in many markets, thereby fostering their growth.Firstly, Shopee has launched initiatives to strengthen 'Shopee Logistics Service (SLS)' and 'Service by Shopee (SBS)', where Shopee takes charge of customs and overseas shipping. SBS is a fulfillment service where sellers stock a certain volume of products in local Shopee warehouses, and local Shopee staff support storage, packing, shipping, and inventory management. For a brand selling skincare products with an average of about 50 orders per day, using SBS can save about 49% in logistics costs compared to other options.Last year, the number of sellers using SBS increased more than threefold from the previous year, and the number of orders increased sixfold.The delivery period has been reduced to an average of 3-5 days, allowing local customers to quickly receive products. This has led to an increase in users for Shopee sellers, who can now focus more on sales. The SBS logistics option is particularly popular among K-Beauty sellers due to strong local demand and good inventory turnover rates. It was found that for the beauty brand COSRX, orders through SBS constituted nearly 42% of their total orders. Cosmetic brand Torriden has shown visible growth since using SBS last year, with orders increasing eightfold in Singapore and more than sixfold in Malaysia.SBS is currently available for Shopee sellers in Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand. Shopee plans to gradually expand the support regions in line with the increasing trend of sellers using SBS. Last October, they started offering fulfillment services in Vietnam through a third-party logistics approach. Moreover, Shopee Korea, in response to the difficulties faced by cross-border sellers in handling returns, refunds, and lost items, launched the 'SLS Plus+' service last year. 'SLS Plus+' automatically compensates for returned, refunded, or lost items with 50% of the final sales price (up to $200, approximately 260,000 KRW). Previously, the compensation was up to $100, but the limit has been increased and the scope expanded to include failed deliveries and post-delivery refunds/returns. # Demand for a Variety of K-Products Following K-Beauty Last year, the demand for a variety of K-products beyond beauty, like fashion and home & living, was also evident in foreign markets through Shopee. The K-Beauty category remained popular, showing a growth of about 40% compared to the previous year (2022). Notably, COSRX's 'Good Morning Gel Cleanser', and domestic beauty brands like d'Alba's 'First Spray Serum' and 'Blur Water Tint', emerged as hit products in K-Beauty. Growth in newly emerging categories like living and fashion was also noticeable. Last year, the 'Home & Living' category grew by 58%, with items like Neoflam's cooking pan series, Korean fabric softeners, and portable hand warmers gaining popularity. The fashion category grew by 38%, with designer bag brand Stand Oil's 'Post Bag' achieving the highest sales for a single item. Additionally, the popularity of K-Pop led to products like girl group TWICE's light sticks and NewJeans' message cards becoming hit products in the 'Hobbies' category. In food and beverages, items like tea brand Teazen's kombucha series and nut brand HBAF's almond snacks were well-received. Kwon Yuna, the head of Shopee Korea, said, "Last year (2023), Korean sellers recorded a greater growth rate than the entire Shopee platform, with transaction volumes up 118% and order numbers 38% higher. This is due to the increased purchasing power of local customers and demand for K-products, leading Korean sellers to offer a variety of products and Shopee to expand its logistics services for faster and safer delivery of more product categories. This year, as the growth of K-products in Southeast Asia, Taiwan, and Latin America is expected to continue, we plan to further refine our services in delivery, returns, and customer support to meet the elevated expectations of local buyers."Introduction to Shopee KoreaFounded in Singapore in 2015, Shopee is the largest e-commerce platform in Southeast Asia and Taiwan, serving a population of 600 million. It has quickly become the top e-commerce platform through mobile-based services optimized for regional user characteristics. Currently, it offers a safe and enjoyable online shopping experience in eight markets, including five countries in Southeast Asia, Taiwan, Brazil, and Mexico. Shopee is a subsidiary of Sea Group, the largest internet company in Southeast Asia providing digital entertainment, e-commerce, and fintech services. Sea Group has rapidly grown since its founding in 2009 and was listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in 2017. Shopee Korea supports Korean sellers in entering the Southeast Asian and Taiwanese markets by providing market opening, seller training, assigned managers, integrated logistics services, local marketing, translation/customer support, and other comprehensive export solutions. More information can be found on the official website.*** TAG 0 ***#ShopeeKorea #ShopeeKorea2023FinancialSummaryKeyWords