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The Telemart brand belongs to e-commerce which is engaged in buying and selling millions of items online and offline in various categories including electronics. The field of e-commerce is a relatively new and untouched concept for Pakistan while the western countries are far ahead of us in this field.
In this regard, MM News held an exclusive interview with Hamza Abdul Rauf, co-founder of Telemart, the details of which are being presented at the service of the readers.
MM News: What is TeleMart and where did you come up with the idea?
Hamza Abdul Rauf: Telemart is an e-commerce brand that is available online as well as offline, we have more than 200,000 items in more than 25 categories.
TeleMart’s idea came after seeing the growth of e-commerce in India in 2011-12 and we introduced first online and then offline business to set a new model to fill the gap in Pakistan.
MM News: How many cities in Pakistan have Telemart?
Hamza Abdul Rauf: TeleMart is currently expanding rapidly in Pakistan and our 18 digital stores in 13 cities across the country are a combination of physical and digital and we are working to expand its reach across Pakistan.
MM News: What do you pay the most attention to on TeleMart?
Hamza Abdul Rauf: We have more than 200,000 items but our preference is more towards electronic devices and citizens are more interested in electronic items.
MM News: New ideas are not very popular in Pakistan, why did you plan to do something new?
Hamza Abdul Rauf: Pakistan has always been reluctant to adopt new things but the younger generation has changed its mindset and when we planned the telemart we had in mind to do something new and many countries of the world. So we tried and then Allah helped us and we got succeeded in our goal and today every department has come towards e-commerce which is a welcome thing.
MM News: What is the secret of your success and progress?
Hamza Abdul Rauf: Fair deal is the most important thing in any business. We at TeleMart have made sure in business that the customer gets what they order and if he or she is provided better quality of service then you can go ahead. No one can stop it from growing.
MM News: What percentage of businesses in Pakistan has shifted to e-commerce?
Hamza Abdul Rauf: Despite all the efforts and endeavors in Pakistan so far only one percent of the business has shifted to e-commerce and the reason is that China is the largest e-commerce business in the world and there is also 25 percent.
MM News: What is the reason for the slowdown of e-commerce in Pakistan?
Hamza Abdul Rauf: E-commerce has spread all over the world at the moment but the reason for its slowdown in Pakistan is trust.
When you are attracting customers to online purchasing, you need to ensure timely delivery and prices need to be kept reasonable so that consumer confidence is restored.
MM News: How is it possible to deal with complaints about defective items online?
Hamza Abdul Rauf: Those who do e-commerce business need to give priority to consumers and there should be a relevant institution whereby registering consumer complaints, fraudsters can be brought to book and complaints can be eliminated and consumers can also shop online.
Be sure to check out this website and always prefer to shop at a good and reputable online store.
MM News: What is the potential for permanent growth of e-commerce industry in future?
Hamza Abdul Rauf: E-commerce is growing rapidly in Pakistan and the volume of online payments till June this year was Rs60 billion which was Rs35 billion last year and this is only advance payment and there is no verified record of cash on delivery but look at the indicators.
It can be estimated that e-commerce is growing very fast in the country and the last one year has seen an increase of 80-90%.
MM News: How to start a business in e-commerce?
Hamza Abdul Rauf: E-commerce is a very large business, using online services for food delivery, air ticketing and even household chores. You should set your priorities before starting an online business.
There are more challenges in selling pre-existing items but there are more opportunities if you bring something new or your creation to the market.
Once you start, you gradually increase it and if you sell your products on other websites along with your own website then your chances of moving forward will increase.
