LAHORE-Two overseas Pakistani brothers have vowed to bring world’s largest e-commerce marketplace Amazon in Pakistan. Saqib Azhar and Faisal Azhar are CEO and COO of ‘Enablers’ that provides local businesses the opportunity to set up an online business on Amazon to widen their reach to a global audience.
The company has successfully strengthened state of local businesses by providing them a wider outlook and contributed in economy by earning foreign currency and increase their exports. The Nation talked to both brothers in an exclusive interview.
Saqib is a British Pakistani with more than 15 years of experience in technology and digital marketing and worked as a consultant for companies in Pakistan, UK, Middle East while his brother Faisal Azhar is an American Pakistani who has expertise in digital profession with proven track record of building and managing online businesses especially on Amazon USA and Europe and also referred as ‘E-commerce Guru’.
“I decided to come back and took the risk but it worked well. I am back in my country to encourage people to start their own multi-million an online international business which has so much potential. Whole purpose was to enable local businesses to develop online business on Amazon. Why Amazon? because Amazon has huge potential. If we look at some number Pakistan yearly export is $24 billion and Amazon sale is $3.5 billion per day in peak seasons. If we work with proper planning and strategy on Amazon website then it could unfold as win-win situation for Pakistan,” Saqib explained.
“I believe that educate, talented and motivated youth and individuals should enter this business so that their professional endeavors lead to not only a better Pakistan but also their own self-actualization,” he said.
Amazon is not available in Pakistan so what we have done it that we have created Enablers Sellers Dashboard that allows people to sell on Amazon through this platform because those people do not have a account and to have an account these companies a need an approved company in registered country of Amazon and unfortunately Pakistan is not on the list.
“We made requests to government and met with Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry and Asad Umar and soon we will be presenting the model to bring Amazon to Pakistan in front of Prime Minster of Imran next and a meeting has been scheduled,” Saqib said.
He explained that for example if x,y,z company is manufacturing their products like socks, If they are being exporting to many international markets via Pakistan but actually those guys are selling directly on Amazon and making so much money by selling online by sourcing from Pakistan.
So what we are saying is why not you directly sell directly on Amazon and instead of bringing of brining middleman into this. But there is challenge behind it because Amazon is so large and complicated and no ones can sell it straight away. It takes time and it requires fair amount of training.
Currently people have to registered accompany in foreign country (103 countries) and bring back money from there in Pakistan to work on Amazon and they are not using Pakistani identity on Amazon because Pakistan is not he approved country list but this could be turned very positively with few policy decisions.
There are some limitations to tap the potential in the e-commerce industry in Pakistan, as Amazon will take few years to come in Pakistan but why to waste these years in waiting as there are ways to enter on Amazon and sell the products. Their needs to be an awards campaign from the government side and from companies like us.
“At Enablers, you will find everything you need to start selling and winning on Amazon. We are here to assure, it is vital to use Amazon as a revenue channel to grow your business. With the expertise in helping you make advanced business strategies and solutions, we are building businesses increase their revenue to a wide extent,” Saqib said.
Faizal Azhar said the vision is clear to facility the local business so they could leverage their business through Amazon. “There is big gap even in the Pakistani economy in e-commerce and we are contributing far less than we have a potential in our countrybut this could be improve through Enablers,” he said.