Shoppster has been recognized from the outset as the largest online marketplace, where you can find almost anything. For the second year in a row, it achieved a 100% growth in turnover and expanded its assortment with over 120,000 products
Ljiljana Ahmetović, CEO of the largest online platform in the region, speaks to CorD Magazine about plans for the coming period. These include expanding their offer, introducing new payment and delivery models, improving communication with customers and launching the largest affiliate programme in our country. She talks of the importance of improving laws and regulations to bring Serbia closer to developed markets, experiences from Slovenia, but also about about the importance of awards they have won in the last three years.
Behind you is another extremely successful year in which you recorded growth in both turnover and range.
— Last year was more than successful. For the second year in a row, we have achieved a 100% increase in turnover, we have expanded our range with over 120,000 new products in 25 categories, we have increased the base of regular customers and long-term suppliers and associates, our team has grown and we have won all the most important awards in e-commerce and marketing. The All in One Place campaign summed up everything that Shoppster is, and met with exceptional reactions from the professional public and customers.
Can we say that Shoppster started a whole chain, an entire eComerce ecosystem?
— That’s right. It will turn out that Shoppster is a base for gathering and connecting buyers and suppliers, small entrepreneurs and world-famous brands and manufacturers, couriers who always deliver the best quality products at the right time.
Serbia is seeing a faster turnover growth in the eCom industry compared to the more developed countries of south-east Europe that have already gone through this phase
In just three years, Shoppster has become the favourite one-stop shop, a safe and reliable partner. But it is also a place where the most respectable experts in the field of e-commerce, who until yesterday worked in global companies, can continue to develop their skills on the local market and create e-commerce markets in Serbia.
Membership of the European Union and single market helps countries in our wider environment to develop eCommerce faster. Where are we? What is our position in the region?
— Doing business outside the European Union certainly reduces the potential of this industry, but as in other activities, Serbia strives to take over the good practice of more advanced eCom countries.
Serbia records a faster turnover growth in the eCom industry compared to the more developed countries of south-east Europe that have already gone through this phase of growth. The number of eCom sellers in all categories is growing, the eCom experience is improving, and at the same time eCom penetration is growing. Given that Shoppster also operates in Slovenia, I can testify that Serbia is catching up with the countries of the European Union on many measures. The work of the E-commerce Association, of which I have recently been the head, makes an important contribution to education, networking and exchange of experience in the eCom industry, besides arranging an appropriate business environment and climate. In the eCom Association of Serbia we are working on preparing proposals to improve laws and regulations that should contribute to bringing us closer to developed markets even faster.
Shoppster operates successfully both in Serbia and Slovenia. To what extent do you manage to transfer experiences, good practices and initiatives from one country to another, related to both staff and partners?
— The Shoppster teams cooperate constantly on a daily basis, in both operations and marketing. We exchange experiences, ideas and initiatives every day, which contributes positively to the work of our company on both markets.
At the end of 2023, you received two prestigious awards at the Festival of Integrated Communications, and even three valuable recognitions at the Hot Spot eCommerce Awards. Awards are not an end in themselves, but they say a lot…
— When we received the awards, I had the need to congratulate and reward our team, but I also pointed out that the awards are, in a way, an obligation to continue the changes and innovations we have started and to be even better.
The Serbian and Slovenian Shoppster teams cooperate constantly and every day, both in operations and marketing
It is not easy, but it is motivating. They are really flattered by the recognitions of the professional public, and especially the comments of customers at all touch points.
The e-commerce market in Serbia continues to grow and, judging by the statistics, this trend will continue in the coming years. What does this mean specifically for Shoppster?
— In just three years, Shoppster launched the online trade market in Serbia and got it moving. We just have to wait and see what you will do in the next three years… Let the market have its say. We are working to remain the favourite one-stop-shop: we are expanding our range, introducing new payment models, new delivery options, continuously improving communication with customers and the experience of shopping on the platform, launching new sales models such as the largest Serbian affiliate programme. And you still follow shoppster.rs because you spent more than 15 million minutes with us last year.