AN ECOMMERCE STORE

Report

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Contents
Launching and Ecommerce Store ................................................................................................................. 3
Objectives ..................................................................................................................................................... 3
Two ways of selling products to other countries .......................................................................................... 3
How to sell online ......................................................................................................................................... 3
Competitors .................................................................................................................................................. 4
Technology .................................................................................................................................................... 4
Taxes ............................................................................................................................................................. 5
Method to ship to US/UK or other countries ............................................................................................... 5
Payment Gateway ......................................................................................................................................... 5
Export of Imported Items.............................................................................................................................. 6
Dropshipping ............................................................................................................................................. 6
Trade & Development Authority (TDAP) ...................................................................................................... 6
Export Promotion Bureau ............................................................................................................................. 6
Ecommerce Industry of the World................................................................................................................ 7
Ecommerce Potential of Pakistan ................................................................................................................. 8
Exports from Pakistan ................................................................................................................................... 8
Export of Mango ........................................................................................................................................... 9
Registering an online store in US .................................................................................................................. 9

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Launching an Ecommerce Store

Advancements in the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) have completely transformed
our life. Internet has become a technology without which it is difficult to survive now. Internet was
initially used as means to access the information. But now, with the help of so many web applications,
internet is providing enormous amount of business and personal tools. These tools are specially
designed to make particular tasks easy.

Ecommerce businesses—which are businesses that transmit goods, services and funds over the internet.
Online shopping is just one of many arenas that has seen extensive growth over the past five years.
According to a Shopify survey, ecommerce was responsible for $1.3 trillion in global sales in 2014, and
other ecommerce statistics expect this number to rise to $4.8 trillion by 2021—meaning that commerce
as we know it is moving in this direction.

Objectives
1. To take an overview of Ecommerce landscape
2. To analyze the ecommerce trends
3. To assess the potential of exports from Pakistan
4. To identify products with high export potential
5. To understand the laws pertinent to exports and payment gateways

Two ways of selling products to other countries

1. Sell under your own brand
a. Build an online store
b. Market in US, UK etc
c. Payment through Cards
d. Ship directly to customers on their address
2. Manufacturing for famous brands like Zara, H&M, Mango, JCPenny
a. It has to be done through independent buying houses or some manufacturers also serve
as buying house
b. Buying houses (like fran.pk) get the contracts and contact the manufacturers to get the
work done

How to sell online

1. Online store of own branded store
2. Alibaba.com

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Pricing of Alibaba.com

Competitors
There are no stores that I could find selling items only to International markets. All the ones available
are focusing on domestic market. Only just a few offer shipment to other countries.

1. Araish.pk
a. Providing home textiles and décor items
2. Khaadi
a. Clothing line
3. Al Karam (only clothing line)
a. Clothing line

All these merchants sell products through the online store. They provide shipping to other countries by
adding shipment charges

Technology

There are two options. Both are equally preferred by businesses

1. Shopify
a. A platform that allows you to build a store choosing any of the available themes for
ecommerce with some customization
b. Payment Gateways are easily Integrated
c. Domain, Hosting, analytics are well taken care by the platform

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 2. Build your own customized platform

Taxes
14 % Pakistan’s GST &
14% US GST

(obtained through Khaadi)

Method to ship to US/UK or other countries

1. Direct shipment method:
a. Book through courier services (by Air)
b. Max limit per package is 50 KGs
c. Approximate: Rs. 2000/kg
2. Bulk Shipping of Pakistani brands
a. Through LCs
b. Through Logistics companies

Payment Gateway
International

1. Skrill
 Skrill is an e-commerce business that allows payments and money transfers to be made
through the Internet, with a focus on low-cost international money transfers.
2. 2checkout
 Accept payments online, anytime, anywhere. 2Checkout.com is an online payment
processing service that helps you accept credit cards, PayPal, and debit
3. Payoneer (bank transfer)
 Payoneer is a financial services company that provides online money transfer and digital
payment services and working capital solutions
4. TT / Bank Transfer
 Bank Transfer to any local bank account
5. Western Union / Money Gram
 Transfer from money exchanges
6. Open an account in US (company registration is a must)

Local

1. Easy Paisa
2. MCB & HBL
3. Sim Sim

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Export of Imported Items
Imported items may be exported for purposes of repairs, replacement, or refilling of cylinders and ISO
tanks subject to submission of indemnity bond to customs authorities undertaking that goods being
exported shall be re-imported after repairs, replacement, or refilling: Provided that in cases where
defective goods have to be exported for which replacement has already been received, the condition of
indemnity bond shall not apply if there is no revenue implication. (TDAP)

In the case of manufacturing from China and selling it in US, the items have to be directly sent to end
customer.

Dropshipping
Drop shipping is a supply chain management method in which the retailer does not keep goods in stock
but instead transfers the customer orders and shipment details to either the manufacturer, another
retailer, or a wholesaler, who then ships the goods directly to the customer

Trade & Development Authority (TDAP)

 Participates in 120 to 140 international trade exhibitions annually.

 Sent & received 40 to 60 trade delegations from abroad every year.
 Organizes the EXPO PAKISTAN annually in Pakistan, which is well-attended by foreign buyers.
 Runs the Expo Centre, Karachi providing a permanent exhibition space for holding trade events.
 Implements various Trade Policy Initiatives announced by the Commerce Ministry.
 Undertakes various sector-development projects from the Export Development Fund.

Export Promotion Bureau

EPB is an attached department of the Ministry of Commerce that facilitates exporters across the
country. More than 20,000 exporters were facilitated and part-funded to exhibit their goods abroad,
and thus grow their exports. Over 2,000 trade delegations were sent abroad or hosted in Pakistan in the
43 years of EPB.

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Ecommerce Industry of the World

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Ecommerce Potential of Pakistan
 Continuously flourishing
 Local E-Commerce Sales stood at Rs 9.8 Billion by the end of June 2017.(SBP)
 Transactions worth Rs 20.7 billion were carried out by consumers on international e-commerce
websites.(SBP)

Exports from Pakistan

Product by Product details are included in the Excel Sheet “Exports from Pakistan”

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Export of Mango
1. The export of mangoes to Europe, Canada, Iran, China, Kuwait and Bahrain by air shall be in
standardized packaging of 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 3.5, 4, 4.5, 5, 5.5, 6, 6.5, 7, 7.5 and 8 kilograms with 5%
variation in weight on either side.
2. Export of mangoes shall not be allowed before 20th May unless otherwise specified by Ministry
of Commerce.
3. The Pakistan Customs authorities shall enforce the weight standards and date of export.

Registering an online store in US

1. Selecting and registering a business name.
2. Locking down a domain name and business website—a good company name isn’t worth as
much without a good website name to go with it.
3. Selecting the business structure that best suits your needs, including sole proprietor,
partnership, LLC or corporation.
4. Getting an employer identification number (EIN), necessary even for businesses with no
employees.
5. Obtaining business permits and licenses, since operating online doesn’t excuse businesses from
needing sales tax or home businesses licenses, depending on the state.

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