E-commerce in Southeast Asia grew rapidly during the pandemic and that momentum continues. TO McKinsey Report found that between now and 2026, the market is expected to triple at a compound growth rate of 22%, reaching $230 billion in gross merchandise volume. It is no surprise that global brands are eager to enter Southeast Asia. E-commerce enablement platform etily helps them build, manage and scale their e-commerce operations.
Founded in 2020 and based in the Philippines, it announced today that it has raised $17.8 million in Series A funding. The round was led by SKS Capital, a Chinese and Taiwanese private equity firm, and Singapore’s Pavilion Capital. Also participating were SBI ICCP, a joint venture between ICCP Venture Partners in the Philippines and Japan’s SBI Holdings (formerly SoftBank Investments), and Kaya Founders, along with the Magsaysay family, the Chan family, Foxmont Capital and JGDEV, JG’s corporate venture arm. Summit Holdings. .
Etaily’s ecosystem includes end-to-end solutions for e-commerce and global omnichannel brands, along with its own portfolio of brands. The startup has around 50 global clients, including Levi’s, Crocs, Reckitt and Skechers, who use it to develop lifestyle products, manage sales on platforms such as Lazada and Shopee and brand.com, and fulfill orders through of etaily’s asset-light warehouse network. So far, it has processed more than 10 million orders and expects to reach gross sales of $40 million this year, with a goal of $100 million by 2025.
Before founding etaily, CEO Alexander Friedhoff had a long career in retail, starting with German t-shirt brand van Laack. There, his roles included manufacturing and product development in Vietnam, and business development and e-commerce implementation in countries such as Australia and Germany. After van Laack, Friedhoff began working at the Southeast Asian e-commerce platform Zalora, where he created the Fulfilment by Zalora program.
etily founder Alexander Friedhoff
Friedhoff decided to launch in the Philippines because “Southeast Asia belongs to the fastest growing consumer markets in the world. In fact, the Philippines is the fastest growing e-commerce market globally,” he told TechCrunch.
Etaily primarily works with brands across six segments: fashion, consumer electronics, lifestyle, beauty, home and fast-moving consumer goods. They sell on their own websites or on e-commerce platforms such as Lazada, Shopee and Zalora.
The value proposition that is increasingly offered to brands focuses on its managed services and technology. Managed services help brands grow using Etaily’s economies of scale, as adding an incremental brand doesn’t incur much overhead. It also helps brands on the demand side with customer data, Etaily market insights, conversion optimization, demand forecasting, and logistics.
Etaily monetizes by participating in the sales generated through its platform. It also has a subscription model, where customers pay a recurring fee to access services like etaily’s subscription-based software, and it generates more money through advertising that brands in its portfolio display on their platforms and content.
In terms of competition, Friedhoff mentions three companies: the Japanese Anymind, Intrepid Ascential and OnPoint Vietnam. Etaily also competes with regional e-commerce facilitators. Etaily’s competitive advantage is how its operating platform is designed and its ability to capture a larger share of the value chain, Friedhoff said. Its omnichannel capabilities enable offline point-of-sale integration into the supply chain, meaning global consumer brands looking to enter the Philippines only need one partner, rather than also finding one for physical sales.
Another advantage is the amount of data you generate each time when scaling different eCommerce brands. This provides them with a lot of data on consumer behavior, channel, demand and traffic, which helps brands in their launch.
Etaily’s vertically integrated services include selling its own brands and third-party luxury brands in more than 200 stores it operates on e-commerce platforms and independent websites. Most of them are powered by Clarity, etaily’s end-to-end e-commerce technology and operational ecosystem, which includes fully integrated commerce, marketing modules, real-time business intelligence data, payments, messaging, fulfillment and customer service. The company also offers product development services based on market and consumer data, and digital branding and content creation through Etaily Studios.
Etaily will use its Series A to expand in Southeast Asia, especially in Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and the Philippines, work on its brand distribution platform and expand its brand portfolio (including its in-house brands). It also plans to invest in its proprietary technology, including an operating system, data analytics and Clarity.
In a statement, SKS Capital founder Jack Chen said: «Etaily’s asset reduction strategy, coupled with its extensive knowledge of e-commerce, supply chain and its utilization of data-driven insights to understand «Consumer behavior and demand offer significant insights into incorporating advanced omnichannel technology solutions into brand operations. This will enable substantial growth in the future.»
