GUEST COLUMNIST
By AMANDA CUA
How did you do your Christmas shopping this year? Thanks to TikTok, we’ve got extra-long wishlists and have brand new gift ideas. And I’m sure you spent 11.11 and 12.12 hunting for Christmas steals to treat yourself (or others).
When was the last time you bought all your gifts from an actual physical store? It feels like forever ago, even if it was probably 2019.
We’ve got to credit the pandemic for that.
It made digitalization, e-commerce, and online shopping a necessity for you and me, and all the businesses around us. But it changed more than just shopping in the Philippines.
The pandemic created a massive leap forward for Southeast Asia’s entire startup ecosystem, thanks to the push to digitalize. And the world knows it.
In the past three years, both global and regional stakeholders are looking at the region for new investments and opportunities more than ever.
That doesn’t mean only investing in Singapore anymore. Now, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, and the rest of Southeast Asia’s more “emerging” startup ecosystems are now on their watchlist.
There’s a golden opportunity for the Philippines.
And what are the three biggest industries in the Philippine startup ecosystem? You guessed it. One of them is e-commerce. The other two are fintech and logistics. They’re all connected, since the latter two make e-commerce possible.
Apart from the tech companies you know like Lazada and Shopee, let’s zoom into the startups that make your online shopping experience possible.
Let’s start with e-commerce — the online brands and marketplaces you can buy from. Maybe you’ll even get some more gift ideas here!
E-commerce startups
Have a friend who loves collectibles? Toki (tokiasia.com) has the Funko Pops, sneakers, and sports cards they love. Each item is 100 percent legit, and it’s ultra-convenient with their online payments and free deliveries.
- They recently raised funding from Foxmont Capital Partners, Kaya Founders, and several angel investors.
Need some new makeup? Colourette (colourette.ph) is a D2C cruelty-free makeup brand — without the cruel prices. With inclusive shades and multi-use products designed for Filipinos, they’ve been topping sales on Lazada and Shopee.
- They raised funding from Foxmont Capital Partners.
Know some new parents? Edamama (edamama.ph) is the Philippines’ leading e-commerce platform for everything moms and babies need! And recently, they expanded to physical stores at SM Southmall, Robinsons Magnolia, and Robinsons Manila.
- You’ll find over 75,000 baby, children, mom, and home items here.
- They recently raised funding from Ayala’s ACTIVE Fund, Kickstart Ventures, Gentree Fund, and more.
Birthday? Anniversary? Just thinking of someone? Flowerstore (flowerstore.ph) has your back. They’re one of the biggest flower and gifting platforms in the Philippines and deliver fast. They’ll never know you almost forgot those flowers.
- They raised funding from Gobi Partners’ Gobi-Core Philippine Fund and other investors.
Looking for new skincare? Pure Culture. (pureculture.ph) They’re a vegan and clean skincare brand created for Filipinos. Everything’s responsibly sourced, sustainable, and allergy-safe. If that wasn’t good enough, they even donate one percent of sales to rewilding habitats, starting with Philippine oceans.
- They’re part of Kaya Founders’ portfolio.
Take forever to do your makeup? Five Beauty (fivebeauty.co) is a newly-launched clean makeup brand with hybrid, multi-use products that help you get out the door in just five minutes. Oh, and did we mention that actress Gabbi Garcia is one of the co-founders?
- They’re part of Kaya Founders’ portfolio.
Now that we’ve talked about where and what you can buy, let’s talk about the fintechs and logistics startups that power many e-commerce startups and online brands. If you’re a business owner, you’d want to know about these too.
Pay and get paid. Fintechs like PayMongo (paymongo.com) and Xendit (xendit.co) allow businesses big and small to accept payments. They’re the ones who make it possible for websites to have a checkout page and for SMEs to send you payment links.
Sell more than ever before. Enablers like Locad and Great Deals make it easier than ever to manage tons of sales, sell on multiple platforms, and ship across the Philippines (and more!) fast.
Locad (golocad.com) allows brands to store, pack, ship, and track orders for e-commerce platforms through their network of warehouses and shipping partners internationally. They work with Nivea, Love, Bonito, Levi’s, Colourette, and Emma Sleep.
Great Deals (greatdealscorp.com) helps global and local brands sell online in the Philippines. They’re basically an e-distributor that does everything from taking photos of your products, managing the platforms you’re selling on, customer support, creating digital marketing campaigns, and even storage and deliveries!
The big picture
According to the recent Philippine Startup Ecosystem Report by Gobi Partners’ Gobi Core Philippine Fund, the Philippine startup ecosystem is strongest in the fintech, logistics, and e-commerce sectors.
It’s clear that like our Southeast Asian neighbors, the Philippines is fast becoming a powerful e-commerce hub. While founders face challenges ahead like limited resources and geographical constraints, there is also plenty of room for growth, given how early our startup ecosystem is.
And for the average consumer, we’re seeing the growth of the startup ecosystem through more convenient shopping experiences, easy online payments, quick deliveries, and more products to choose from.
But that’s just for now. We’re excited to see what new startup products, services, and experiences 2024 will bring.
(Amanda Cua is the founder and CEO of Back Scoop, a media startup with a free newsletter that features news on business and startups in Southeast Asia.)