After the storm comes… omnichannel
Ignacio Caride has dedicated just over 16 years of his life to working within the growing environment of electronic commerce in Latin America. However, in all this time, he had never witnessed this universe register growth as high as that observed during the past year.
And it is that the pandemic caused by the SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus and its different variants led to this segment having its greatest development, not only in Mexico or this region, but in most of the world.
Follow business information in our specialized section
Only within our territory, according to a study carried out by the Mexican Association of Online Sales (AMVO), the growth that eCommerce had, compared to 2019, was 81%.
This is a phenomenon that was generated, to a large extent, due to the confinement that most people in Mexico began to live in March of last year, seeking to avoid contact with other people and thus reduce the risk of contagion .
“I have spent 16 years of my life working directly in e-commerce, dedicating myself, along with all of us who are part of this industry, to trying to change and improve it every year, but what happened in 2020, although for the wrong reasons, hard and sad, it was something very big, ”says Caride, in an interview with Forbes Mexico.
From their perspective, the strange situation that was experienced made many people who had never thought of "doing the supermarket" or other various purchases online, finally ventured to explore this option.
“What this pandemic did was it led people to try the e-commerce experience, which opened a very important window of opportunity for those of us who provide this service,” Caride points out.
Explosion
This was something the executive experienced firsthand. When he started last year, although he was very clear that he wanted to push the development of Walmart's online sales channel hard, he did not think that what would happen would be, even if positive, a real storm.
It all began in mid-March 2020, when the pandemic finally touched Mexico and people began to do their activities online from one day to the next, including, in many cases, grocery shopping. That was how very quickly, recalls Ignacio Caride, they began to receive a very high number of orders, which put them to work at a rate greater than their capacities.
“Since before, we had been investing a lot in our online sales platform; and, as of 2018, in particular on the subject of the super at home and the optimal service, we work harder. So, the reality is that, when this blow came from one day to the next, I think we were already very well prepared, ”says the manager.
Despite having these bases, things were not easy at all, basically because, he says, during the first months of the crisis, precisely March and April, the volume of orders they received grew by up to 300% per on top of what they had previously been operating.
“The beginning was the most complex, mainly due to truck and merchandise issues, but, just a few weeks later, we were ready to move on,” says Caride.
According to the annual report of the retail chain, in Mexico around 2,700 pickers were hired to help in the selection of products that were sent to homes, in addition to the fact that, in the last year, three new distribution centers of the group.
Likewise, the company also enabled its item pickup service in 1,349 stores, which allows you to place orders online and pick them up at the door of the establishment.
As the year progressed, things gradually settled down. The company's eCommerce segment closed with a growth of 171%, compared to 2019.
Of the 701,734 million pesos (mdp) that the firm obtained in income in our country and Central America in 2020, 3.8% already came through the electronic commerce channel.
“It was a very interesting process, in which we saw how people adapted. Initially, the world went crazy for basic products and disinfectants. That lasted about four or five weeks. Afterwards, the purchasing pattern gradually changed, going through categories such as sports, home and clothing”, he recalls.
But the end of last year did not mean a pause for the e-commerce push. In 2021, says the Walmart executive and former member of Mercado Libre, the trend continued to advance.
“I would tell you that, during the first quarter of 2021, nothing changed. The trend perhaps started to change a bit as the risk traffic lights started to change,” she says.
A new world
What Ignacio Caride is sure of is that, even if people go back to having a life similar to what existed before the pandemic, nothing will stop the rhythm of development that electronic commerce has reached in our country.
“What I see as a fact is that we will not return, at all, to 2019 levels. In fact, today we are growing well, compared to 2020; Not with those fast rates anymore, but fine. This tells you that those who have already tried this service will continue in the future”, he explains.
The American retail giant plans to continue doing everything possible to take advantage of this eCommerce boom, relying, among other things, on the work they are going to do to strengthen their express shipping, in addition to the launch of Walmart Pass.
The latter is a monthly or yearly subscription service that aims to eliminate shipping cost concerns for customers. “The issue of cost means that, many times, the purchase does not suit people; So, with this new service, we expand this opportunity”, he comments.
In addition, Ignacio Caride is analyzing some other options that allow Walmart to strengthen its progress; among them, new delivery schedules that facilitate the day to day of people.
“In terms of service, it bothers me a lot to have to be present to receive my orders. What happens if [my purchase] is delivered to me at dawn and I can already enjoy everything when I wake up? We are thinking about new things, infrastructure development and more”, he warns.
But, for the company, the electronic sales channel is not everything, but only a small part of the plans it has. And it is that Ignacio Caride is thinking about the idea of developing an entire omnichannel ecosystem that allows Walmart to have contact with its consumers from anywhere.
“Our priority is to create an ecosystem that includes electronic commerce. We want to be people's favorite omnichannel retailer. This means having the stores, a good eCommerce, financial services that facilitate payments and many other things”, he maintains.
Last year the company even announced the launch of BAIT, an internet and telephone service that aims to bring the firm even closer to its clients.
“This issue started precisely because we were wondering what were the determining factors for people to go to our e-commerce. That is why we created the telephone company ”, she explains.
It hasn't been easy for the Walmart executive to lead these efforts remotely, from home. However, for Ignacio Caride, this complete leap into the world of omnichannel is the key for retail to continue gaining ground in Mexico and for the necessary conditions to exist.
“The year 2020 was very eventful, due to everything that happened in the business, but we worked to [take advantage of] more [opportunities], because we want to be in all possible instances of the clients' day-to-day lives,” he concludes.
Subscribe to Forbes Mexico
