J.P. Morgan Asset Management invests in LAZADA

LAZADA, the leading online department store in Southeast Asia (Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand), has confirmed an investment by J.P. Morgan Asset Management, which will take a stake in LAZADA through its German holding.

It was first launched in five Southeast Asian countries during the spring of 2012, and is claimed to have become the fastest growing online department store in the region. Since then, LAZADA has surpassed most established local and international competitors and according to web ranking site Alexa.com it is already ranking among the top local B2C eCommerce sites in all of its markets - ranked among the top 100 most-visited sites in Malaysia by Alexa Rating System less than three months after going live.

According to LAZADA, Southeast Asia is a region with a population of more than 600 million people and a growing young middle-class who are tech savvy, online and breathing social media.

With the support of Rocket Internet, the leading global online venture incubator (e.g. Zalando, Dafiti), LAZADA has already established itself as a household name in the region by providing a one-stop shopping experience online. With an unrivalled brand and product selection available online, LAZADA has developed a wide offering ranging from consumer electronics to household goods, toys and sports equipment. Today, approximately 1,000 employees are operating streamlined businesses with own logistics and distribution centers in Indonesia, Vietnam, Philippines, Thailand and Malaysia.

“We feel very honoured to welcome J.P. Morgan to our investor group and are particularly excited to be joined by an investor that shares our vision and belief in the huge potential of this populous region replicating online shopping behaviours in developed countries”, regional CEO Maximilian Bittner commented. “This will further support our growth as we strive to offer all of our customers fast, convenient and secure online shopping experiences”.

J.P. Morgan Asset Management Portfolio Manager Robert Cousin, who worked on the deal from New York, confirmed the transaction, saying, “We are excited to partner with LAZADA as it continues to expand its eCommerce presence in Southeast Asia."

Lazada has been able to successfully compete with other online and even offline retail stores mostly because of the unique services that we provide, such as free delivery, COD, a 14 day return and exchange policy and full manufacturer warranty on all products. Because of this we have gained great attention and trust of consumers and we are confident we can gain a strong foothold in the market. Mostly because of the two major factors that give us leverage over our competitors, a) Lazada is convenient b) Lazada is safe.

Lazada works closely with corporate partners for promotions as part of marketing strategy. For instance, when Lazada customers shop over RM100 they get a complimentary Starbucks Card preloaded with RM10. We had voucher promotions with TGV cinemas and MAKNA which is Lazada’s charity partner group. It is currently working with banks for enable zero rates installments payment for credit card holders. Next month, it will be giving away exciting prizes with media partners where shoppers that hear about Lazada from these sources stand a chance to win big prizes from Lazada.

It is one of the few online companies who have invested substantial amount of money into marketing and advertisement.

Speaking about advertisement, Lazada web sites do not host other advertisements.

Comments

Derek said…
Wow, it's amazing that an investment company of JP Morgan's size is investing in Lazada. Looks like they are definitely here to stay. Hmm...
Brandon Teoh said…
I always thought Amazon was about it.

Lazada and alikes may exert considerate pressure on conventional retail industry.
Black said…
I always think Lazada has a very good potential to grow in country especially in Malaysia which is still new in e-commerce.

However they may need to hire more workers as they have gathered themselves quite a lot of negative feedback regarding late delivery.
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