Modern marketplaces: how they work in the interests of Belarusian manufacturers

At a recent meeting of the Head of State with representatives of private enterprises on the development of the business sector of the economy, the issue of the work of marketplaces was directly touched upon - primarily Wildberries, which plans to expand its presence in Belarus. Continuing the conversation, “EG” turned to the Deputy Chairman of the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Denis MELESHKIN with a request to talk about the main approaches to developing interaction between domestic manufacturers and marketplaces.

– Denis Vladimirovich, how does the BelCCI see the role of electronic trading platforms in promoting Belarusian-made products?

– International trade is actively moving to digital. Today it is easier to establish and develop connections with foreign partners, discuss the terms of contracts, exchange documentation, and act directly without intermediaries. In this situation, it is extremely necessary for our manufacturers and exporters to be given the opportunity to have a dignified presence on business platforms, using mechanisms to promote their goods as effectively as possible.

In our opinion, today the requests of business and the state to establish clear rules of trade using its most advanced tools completely coincide. The goal of the movement is very clear: everything should be built around the interests of the domestic manufacturer. At a meeting with business circles on February 17, the country's leadership stated that Belarus is striving for import substitution, and we would like to occupy our small market with our production.

– How does the BelCCI intend to help Belarusian enterprises build effective interaction with marketplaces?

– We are ready to help both in establishing direct contacts and in terms of information and legal support. Thus, on March 13, the BelCCI plans to hold a seminar on the topic “Electronic commerce – a tool for promoting Belarusian goods.” First of all, we expect a speech fr om the leadership of the Ministry of Antimonopoly Regulation and Trade, which will outline the main approaches of the state to the development of electronic trading platforms.

Of course, we invited a Wildberries representative to familiarize the audience with the features, advantages, and practical aspects of trading on the marketplace and using the “Made in Belarus” label. BelCCI specialists will touch upon issues of examination, certification and verification procedures for goods. I think it will be interesting to hear the analytics from Sber Bank’s representative on the development of e-commerce.

In an attempt to diversify the trading opportunities of Belarusian business, we plan to familiarize them with the potential of other electronic platforms. The Foreign Economic Activity Agency will talk about its experience of working with Alibaba, of which it is a service partner. It is the world's largest B2B platform with an audience of more than 160 million unique visitors per month from 200 countries.

We believe that entrepreneurs will also benefit from the speech of a representative of the Belarusian Universal Commodity Exchange, which has a wide geography of export supplies with many foreign participants.

– What problems do the BelCCI see when working on marketplaces?

– Since digitalization throughout the world and in Belarus is actively gaining weight and there is no alternative to it today, along with the advantages of electronic trading platforms, it is necessary to openly discuss the problems arising in connection with this. The transition of trade to digital must be accompanied by a wide presence of Belarusian goods on the Internet. And along the way, work issues inevitably arise.

Firstly, there are cases when outright fakes appear under the guise of domestic goods. Suffice it to recall the stories of falsification of Rogachev condensed milk, not only in the CIS, but also in the markets of the European Union.

Secondly, it is necessary to create conditions to reduce the delivery time of goods to consumers and, in general, to simplify logistics.

Thirdly, it is important to achieve clarity and transparency when paying VAT, understanding wh ere the goods displayed on the marketplace were ultimately sold.

Fourthly, enterprises often do not have enough specialists who are well versed in working with marketplaces and effectively monitor the conditions for registration and further promotion of goods.

Fifthly, pricing. There are questions for companies from tax and other regulatory authorities.

These are only some of the problems that we hope to highlight more clearly at the seminar and discuss their adequate solutions.

Information from the BelCCI. E-commerce is a type of business activity that is associated with the purchase and sale of goods and services using electronic means.

All over the world, e-commerce turnover is constantly growing at a high rate, because... The electronic environment provides ample opportunities for promoting products. According to the Statista portal, in 2020, e-commerce retail sales worldwide amounted to USD 4.28 trillion. In 2022, revenue from retail trade reached up to 5.4 trillion USD, and in 2025 it is forecast to be 6.3 trillion USD.

In Belarus, according to Statista, from 2023 to 2027, revenue from e-commerce will grow by 13.38%. The number of online shoppers will account for 45.8% of the total, and by 2027 will increase to 49.1%.

Source: Economic newspaper