It is of no surprise that the ongoing pandemic has hit all sectors of the economy hard. It’s more pronounced for the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) who mostly function on a day to day basis are suffering miserably. With this in mind, Daraz is offering a helping hand to the SMEs by launching the Daraz Seller Sahayatri Program. This initiative might help mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on businesses in Nepal.
Overview
Realizing how crucial it is to reinvigorate the SME sector, the Daraz Seller Sahayatri Program seeks to invite retailers and businesses across Nepal to set up their digital ventures on Daraz.
The SME sector contributes to around 22% of the GDP and generates around 17 lakh employment, so it is very important that the sector gets more attention, especially at times of these crises.
Read: List of Online platforms for essential goods delivery during the lockdown
0% commission from Daraz
The subsidy is a promise to charge 0% marketplace fees to SMEs for May and June on the sales made by them via the platform (Daraz) during these months. This way, the total local package includes subsidies of more than half a million dollars. Through this program, Daraz tires to motivate as many SMEs to start and grow their ventures online.
For ease of the users wanting to enroll in this program, Daraz has brought forward services such as,
- Swift store setup, so that it’s easier for new businesses across the country to start with sales as early on.
- SMEs will also be allowed access to analytical tools, free-of-cost education, and training on e-commerce operations through Daraz University for better optimization.
Daraz has also outlined other support initiatives in relation to this program such as,
- Weekly payouts to all Daraz sellers until 30th June 2020.
- Assurance of dedicated campaigns and visibility on the Daraz app for all SME sellers.
- Free access to analytical tools to improve performance.
- One-on-one support to help new sellers set up their online shops.
“Daraz is confident that the Sahayatri program will help thousands of SMEs get back on their feet by leveraging the increased e-commerce activity and reaching millions of Daraz customers across the country,” -Daraz spokesperson .
Conclusion
This move by Daraz gives hope to a lot of small and medium scale enterprises to start what had been on halt because of the COVID-19 outbreak. And with this, current norms like social distancing can be abided better through digital means.
So, Daraz is encouraging all the SMEs that wish to transition online to reach to the company. This can be done by directly contacting the company (Daraz) or simply register on the platform’s sign up page here.
Daraz Seller Sahayatri Program (Summary)
- It is an initiative for SME businesses to set up their online shops on Daraz (a e-commerce marketplace).
- Daraz will help new sellers set up their stores online with dedicated support and access to free business consultation.
- They will also provide 0% marketplace fee for Sellers.
