New Straits Times (Malaysia)
4 September 2011
TRENDS: Stock-free business
Want to start a business on the Net but low on resources? ROZANA SANI looks at a viable drop-shipping option
AT the rate the cost of living is rising these days, many people are looking at ways to supplement their income. Doing business on the Net is one option. However, lack of technical know-how, time and capital are usually major hurdles to overcome.
Perhaps, those faced with these challenges could look into the concept of drop-shipping.
Drop-shipping is a supply chain management technique in which the Netpreneur (also known as the retailer) does not keep goods in stock but instead, transfers customer orders and shipment details to either a manufacturer or a wholesaler who then ships the goods directly to the customer.
Sounds simple but the problems of this method are twofold: The time and complexity of locating and identifying reliable wholesalers and quality products, and the issue of setting up a website for sales transactions has still to be tackled.
Local outfit Edy Marketing (edymart.com) believes it has the solution for such individuals. Founder and manager Shamsurizam Norsham says the company provides an end-to-end online shop system called EdyMart that helps create a storefront for Netpreneurs. This connects them directly to a selection of suppliers who have been screened by the management who offer a multitude of products from clothing and dry food to bicycles, even gold bars.
“With the EdyMart system, they can start business without forking out money to buy products, keep stock or bother with delivery — it’s all taken care of.
“Budding Netpreneurs can come on EdyMart as agents and set up an online shop in just five minutes. All they have to do is fill up a secure form with information like their address, email and bank details. They can also choose which product categories they want to market as well as the front page graphics and logo of their online shop,” says Shamsurizam who holds a Bachelor degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from UK’s Loughborough University.
Shamsurizam, 31, whose nickname is Edy, is no stranger to retail. As a child, he often helped out at his grandfather’s pasar malam stall in Rawang. This early knowledge is further boosted with skills he garnered in the UK, including PHP programming, Java script, API applications, MySGL, Internet marketing and DHTML (Dynamic HTML describes the art of making dynamic and interactive web pages. DHTML combines HTML, JavaScript, the HTML DOM, and CSS).
Among his work in the UK was designing an online shipping service for Malaysians to ship stuff back to UK and an SMS-based messaging system at his campus.
“The individual online Edymart stores are equipped with a shopping cart for easy orders and stock tracking. There is a catalogue function where the Netpreneur can choose to display from the EdyMart inventory which spans up to 300 types and is added on to from time to time. It’s up to the Netpreneur to market his or her store — they can use Facebook or any other method to drive traffic to the store. But once they have the order, informed us at Edy Marketing and banked in the money to us, they can be assured the customer is being served and will have the product within the next three days,” he says.
Already in its second year, EdyMart has a 4,000-odd online community with around 1,003 distributors.
“My mission is to help develop entrepreneurs — both offline (suppliers) and online — to service customers all around the world. With the right infrastructure and training, I think this is achievable,” says Shamsurizam confidently.
He adds that he intends to tighten the system to further ease the process of buying and selling and include phone, email and SMS features as well as add on more economically priced products.
“I’m looking at housewives, the unemployed, small and medium industries to take up the opportunities at EdyMart.”
To open an EdyMart store, interested parties need only fork out RM100 as a one-off cost and the store is theirs for the next 30 days. After that, there is a charge of RM1 per day for administrative and management services.
At present, there’s a 14-day free trial offer.
4 September 2011
TRENDS: Stock-free business
Want to start a business on the Net but low on resources? ROZANA SANI looks at a viable drop-shipping option
AT the rate the cost of living is rising these days, many people are looking at ways to supplement their income. Doing business on the Net is one option. However, lack of technical know-how, time and capital are usually major hurdles to overcome.
Perhaps, those faced with these challenges could look into the concept of drop-shipping.
Drop-shipping is a supply chain management technique in which the Netpreneur (also known as the retailer) does not keep goods in stock but instead, transfers customer orders and shipment details to either a manufacturer or a wholesaler who then ships the goods directly to the customer.
Sounds simple but the problems of this method are twofold: The time and complexity of locating and identifying reliable wholesalers and quality products, and the issue of setting up a website for sales transactions has still to be tackled.
Local outfit Edy Marketing (edymart.com) believes it has the solution for such individuals. Founder and manager Shamsurizam Norsham says the company provides an end-to-end online shop system called EdyMart that helps create a storefront for Netpreneurs. This connects them directly to a selection of suppliers who have been screened by the management who offer a multitude of products from clothing and dry food to bicycles, even gold bars.
“With the EdyMart system, they can start business without forking out money to buy products, keep stock or bother with delivery — it’s all taken care of.
“Budding Netpreneurs can come on EdyMart as agents and set up an online shop in just five minutes. All they have to do is fill up a secure form with information like their address, email and bank details. They can also choose which product categories they want to market as well as the front page graphics and logo of their online shop,” says Shamsurizam who holds a Bachelor degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from UK’s Loughborough University.
Shamsurizam, 31, whose nickname is Edy, is no stranger to retail. As a child, he often helped out at his grandfather’s pasar malam stall in Rawang. This early knowledge is further boosted with skills he garnered in the UK, including PHP programming, Java script, API applications, MySGL, Internet marketing and DHTML (Dynamic HTML describes the art of making dynamic and interactive web pages. DHTML combines HTML, JavaScript, the HTML DOM, and CSS).
Among his work in the UK was designing an online shipping service for Malaysians to ship stuff back to UK and an SMS-based messaging system at his campus.
“The individual online Edymart stores are equipped with a shopping cart for easy orders and stock tracking. There is a catalogue function where the Netpreneur can choose to display from the EdyMart inventory which spans up to 300 types and is added on to from time to time. It’s up to the Netpreneur to market his or her store — they can use Facebook or any other method to drive traffic to the store. But once they have the order, informed us at Edy Marketing and banked in the money to us, they can be assured the customer is being served and will have the product within the next three days,” he says.
Already in its second year, EdyMart has a 4,000-odd online community with around 1,003 distributors.
“My mission is to help develop entrepreneurs — both offline (suppliers) and online — to service customers all around the world. With the right infrastructure and training, I think this is achievable,” says Shamsurizam confidently.
He adds that he intends to tighten the system to further ease the process of buying and selling and include phone, email and SMS features as well as add on more economically priced products.
“I’m looking at housewives, the unemployed, small and medium industries to take up the opportunities at EdyMart.”
To open an EdyMart store, interested parties need only fork out RM100 as a one-off cost and the store is theirs for the next 30 days. After that, there is a charge of RM1 per day for administrative and management services.
At present, there’s a 14-day free trial offer.
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