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Connecting Locals to Locals: Market Discovery through E-Commerce

Author

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  • Santitarn Sathirathai
  • Voraprapa Nakavachara

Abstract

Despite rapid growth in e-commerce, there has been little systematic research examining the impact of online commerce adoption on the entrepreneurs in ASEAN. Using a unique survey data of around 7,000 merchants on Shopee in Thailand, this paper seeks to fill that gap through a mix of econometric and trade connectivity analyses. We found that e-commerce adoption is associated with improvement in household incomes for the sellers. The benefits come from two different channels. First, e-commerce empowers existing SMEs by significantly boosting their revenue, efficiency, and profit growth. The improvement in profitability seems to go beyond a one-off gain as going online seems to also result in stronger profit growth rates. Second, our trade connectivity analysis illustrates how e-commerce allows merchants, especially those in the poorer regions, discover new market opportunity outside their own regions. In addition, e-commerce allows people of various employment status including full-time employees, homemakers, students, etc. to earn additional income, while maintaining other responsibilities.

Suggested Citation

  • Santitarn Sathirathai & Voraprapa Nakavachara, 2019. "Connecting Locals to Locals: Market Discovery through E-Commerce," PIER Discussion Papers 118, Puey Ungphakorn Institute for Economic Research.
    • Handle: RePEc:pui:dpaper:118
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Victor Couture & Benjamin Faber & Yizhen Gu & Lizhi Liu, 2021. "Connecting the Countryside via E-Commerce: Evidence from China," American Economic Review: Insights, American Economic Association, vol. 3(1), pages 35-50, March.
    2. Victor Couture & Benjamin Faber & Yizhen Gu, 2018. "E-Commerce Integration and Economic Development: Evidence from China," 2018 Meeting Papers 114, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    3. Paul Dolfen & Liran Einav & Peter J. Klenow & Benjamin Klopack & Jonathan D. Levin & Larry Levin & Wayne Best, 2023. "Assessing the Gains from E-Commerce," American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 15(1), pages 342-370, January.
    4. Andreas Lendle & Marcelo Olarreaga & Simon Schropp & Pierre‐Louis Vézina, 2016. "There Goes Gravity: eBay and the Death of Distance," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 126(591), pages 406-441, March.
    5. Fan, Jingting & Tang, Lixin & Zhu, Weiming & Zou, Ben, 2018. "The Alibaba effect: Spatial consumption inequality and the welfare gains from e-commerce," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 203-220.
    6. Huang, Bihong & Shaban, Mohamed & Song, Quanyun & Wu, Yu, 2018. "E-commerce Development and Entrepreneurship in the People’s Republic of China," ADBI Working Papers 827, Asian Development Bank Institute.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    E-Commerce; Digital Economy; Connectivity; Thailand;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L81 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Retail and Wholesale Trade; e-Commerce
    • F15 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Economic Integration
    • F63 - International Economics - - Economic Impacts of Globalization - - - Economic Development
    • R12 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Size and Spatial Distributions of Regional Economic Activity; Interregional Trade (economic geography)

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