eBay has opened a Vietnamese marketplace—the first in Southeast Asia for the auction giant, and its third in Asia. eBay teamed up with ChoDienTu.VN, a leading Vietnamese marketplace, to launch the site, which is known as eBay.vn.
eBay and ChoDienTu.VN originally partnered last June to increase e-commerce growth in Vietnam and open up international trade opportunities, according to eBay.
"Our vision is to enable individuals and businesses in Vietnam to buy or sell practically anything over the Internet easily and effectively," notes Nguyen Hoa Binh, chief executive officer of PeaceSoft, which owns ChoDienTu.VN. "Through the co-branded site we hope to better equip Vietnamese users to leverage the wide reach and economic benefits conduction e-commerce."
The move is part of an expansion effort eBay hopes will strengthen its brand globally and fuel long-term growth. Last month, eBay asserted its dominance in the Korean e-commerce market with a deal to acquire Gmarket for $1.2 billion. Company officials said the time that Asia would be a major focus for the company's growth plans.
Vietnam has a fast-growing online market with almost 18 million Internet users, or about 21 percent of the country's population, eBay notes. Although it is unknown how much money eBay stands to make from its new venture, "Virtual shopping has taken off in Vietnam," notes Veitnews, an English-language publication in Vietnam.
The country was deemed the "world's most attractive" up-and-coming market for retail investment in the 2008 Global Retail Development Index.
"We believe the Vietnamese people and companies will recognize the tremendous potential eBay offers as the leading global online marketplace and we expect our user base here to continue to grow," notes Sam McDonagh, director for eBay Southeast Asia.
Alibaba, another large marketplace, is also venturing into Vietnam by partnering with Vinalink. Yahoo and Google have also delved into the Southeast Asian market by providing several services, including shopping services, to Vietnamese citizens.
Auctiva staff writers constantly monitor trends and best practices of those selling on eBay and elsewhere online. They attend relevant training seminars and trade shows and regularly discuss the market with PowerSellers and other market experts.
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