F E A T U R E
To relieve the vast army of online shoppers from the ever-growing stress of hundreds of e-commerce platforms to choose from, Shobazaar began its journey last month.
ShoBazaar is the first Bangladeshi e-commerce platform specifically intended for online stores and startups. Through partnering with numerous enterprises, ShoBazaar aims to provide consultancy and promotional support to their partners and connect customers to essential SMEs and reliable startups.
Within a month, they successfully partnered up with more than fifty stores, serving as a hub for social purchases. However, as a relatively new company and concept, they faced some obstacles in generating public response within a short period of time. Upon being asked how they managed to overcome the challenges, ShoBazaar’s Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Ridan Mehran Mahbub, told us,
“Since the idea of ShoBazaar is completely new, it’s often difficult to convince stores and startups to be a part of us since it’s hard for them to understand the concept at times.”
He also added,
“The young entrepreneurial circle in Bangladesh is very connected, and I’m sure all the stores were hoping for an e-commerce platform that would help the customers and the stores. As a result, when we launched ShoBazaar, we found owners from different stores reaching out to us to become a seller.”
To operate the platform, ShoBazaar charges a small membership fee from their partnered stores on a rotational basis. That capital is further invested into improving the overall quality of their platform. Although profits may not be Shobazaar’s current motive, they plan to approach and attract sponsors and investors to make their company more sustainable in the long run. As a result, they also hope to help emerging startups grow and develop further over time.
As an end goal, they aim to become a bridge between customers and reliable stores fit for everyone’s tastes. They want their name to be synonymous with online shopping and social commerce in the minds of the Bangladeshi populace.
Connect with ShoBazaar on their Facebook page, Instagram profile, or website.