Makro captures the trend of online business growth by developing the application ‘maknet’ as the company’s new S-Curve. The application will serve as an online wholesale market for entrepreneurs and aims to be the no. 1 B2B marketplace in Thailand.
Mr. Ricardo Boarotto, Chief Executive Officer, Makro Thailand Business Unit, revealed, “The demand in online channels is increasing. During the past two years, Makro’s sales through the omni-channel have almost doubled. Meanwhile, the overall outlook of the hotel-restaurant-café and catering (HORECA) sector is expected to show a clear recovery trend from the relaxation of preventive measures against Covid-19 and economic stimulus by the government. Therefore, we have launched ‘maknet’, B2B marketplace to meet the needs of entrepreneurs in the form of end-to-end solutions, making use of Makro’s expertise over 32 years together with a network of over 5,000 partners and SMEs to offer a complete range of products and services at cost-effective prices.”
He added, “maknet will be the new S-Curve for Makro business growth, and we believe that it can become the no. 1 B2B marketplace in the country.”
Mr. Chakkit Chatupanyachotikul, Director of Digital Business, Siam Makro PCL, said, “maknet is designed to be a comprehensive online wholesale market for HORECA entrepreneurs who either want to start a business or expand their business. The end-to-end solution strategy involves covering a wide variety of products all in one place, offering other related services for business, and serving as a platform that focuses on creating convenience and good experiences. All backed with efficient delivery where the buyer can set the date in advance and there are various forms of payment.”
Mr. Chakkit shared maknet’s future plan: “We are targeting a customer base of 50,000 by the end of 2022 as well as an increase to 500,000 customers within the next three years. Currently, maknet offers more than 30,000 products and services from both Makro and other leading brands, covering product groups such as fresh foods, dried foods, packaging and equipment for the HORECA sector. By the end of 2022, we expect to expand to 100,000 products and services, including special privileges for entrepreneurs who regularly use our services.”
The application has garnered positive feedback from entrepreneurs. Ms. Tatchaya Tanachaihirun, owner of Bamee Kon Sae Lee (Thong Lo & Sukhumvit 36), said, “Previously, I had to get my staff to buy and store products from many places, making it very difficult to manage inventory. Some places ran out of products or didn’t have everything we needed. It was a waste of time and sales opportunities. maknet can solve this problem and is not complicated to use. You can choose the date of receiving the product and plan to order in advance. This makes it very suitable for businesses that don’t want to store large quantities of goods. It is convenient and time-saving and makes it easy to manage our inventory, all in one place. Best of all, increases sales opportunities.”
