i guess this is what happens if Ensogo does not adapt ... I wonder if this is a good or bad sign for Ensogo? Groupon last year, Rakuten this year
February 14, 2016:
Japanese e-commerce and internet major
Rakuten announced that it is shutting down its early model e-commerce marketplaces in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore, even as it embarks on restructuring exercise, termed ‘business transformation’, that will see it step up focus on its home market and select geographies.
Rakuten will cease operations in the three major south east Asian markets from March 1, 2016. The shouting down of operations in these countries will see about 150 employees being laid off, the company said.
According to a press statement, Rakuten intends to focus on the e-commerce market in Japan where it is a market leader. Apart from Japan, it will continue to operate in Taiwan, East Asia and the United States.
“As part of the transformation, early model e-commerce marketplaces in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia will be closed. Rakuten will maintain its regional Asian headquarters in Singapore and continue to operate other businesses in the region, as well as look for new opportunities for growth in Southeast Asia,” the company said.
Rakuten, which competes with Rocket Internet SE’s Lazada and others in South East Asa, in the e-commerce space, will continue its businesses in the region, including Rakuten Travel, Viber, Kobo, Rakuten Institute of Technology and Rakuten Ventures, will continue as usual, even as the Japanese firm scouts for new opportunities for growth in Southeast Asia.
In a related development, Rakuten said it will debut its consumer-to-consumer marketplace app, Rakuma, to service markets in Southeast Asia. This app will compete against other services currently available in the market, such as Singapore-based Carousell, in which the Japanese company is already an investor through Rakuten Ventures.
Rakuten has been operating in Indonesia since mid-2011 when it entered the market in cooperation with
MNC Group as a local partner. But they decided to split in late 2013. “Rakuten Online Shopping will be closed on March 1, 2016. Please note that all the rest of the Rakuten Super Points will expire February 29, 2016,” the company said on its website.
The company announced its Vision 2020, along with its financial results for FY2015 on Friday, where it has outlined the areas it would lay emphasis on. As part of these milestones, the Japanese major has outlined that internet finance, or fintech, was expected to be growth driver for the company.
On e-commerce, its vision is to develop the ecosystem model in Taiwan, accelerate cross-border trading in East Asia, an open e-commerce strategy led by Ebates in the United States; and introduction of C2C mobile services across the globe.
