By Hamed Mahmoud
ExpandCart launched its latest package that sets up free-charged online lifetime stores for clients without having to pay any monthly or annual subscriptions, hoping to align itself with the state’s plans and targets through shoring up small and medium-sized enterprises and changing course towards the digital economy.
ExpandCart is the first Arabic electronic platform that provides its services to around 40 countries worldwide. It has branches in Egypt and the United States with more than 20,000 clients, and will soon expand into the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
“Setting up the platform came first to mind back in 2013. Later on, it was developed and expanded to include additional services as of 2017, “said Chief Executive of ExpandCart Eng. Amr Shawqi.
The platform services became available in several foreign markets in the presence of a strong worldwide client base and branches outside Egypt, he explained, noting that founders of the startup are Egyptian youths and co-founders of diverse nationalities came along afterwards.
The platform rolls out new e-commerce concept with the latter growing in a remarkable way recently, and last year in particular amid Coronavirus pandemic.
ExpandCart’s platform help clients set up electronic stores in a simple manner using Arabic tutorials that enable them to create their own stores and display its services smoothly. Also technical support and maintenance services are made available.
“One package that the platform introduced last February help traders set up electronic stores, showcase a maximum of 300 products, receive orders and manage selling and freight for free.”
Setting up electronic websites and stores is a more effective selling solution than social media websites. The former exhibits products and provides clients with tutorials, sets prices and receives purchasing orders, as it provides solutions to support the youth and traders wishing to start their own online businesses for free, he elaborated.
The platform launched Drop shipping, a smart solution for those who have no products and seek to start their own online businesses, as it is a method that allows traders to link their stores with big suppliers such as Express, Kanawat and E-bay, among others and deliver products directly to the customer. They can display and sell products of those suppliers electronically after adding a profit margin, and thus benefiting small sellers lacking in capital necessary for purchasing products.
The company has broad base of customers of leading brands in Egypt, KSA, Kuwait, the Arab countries and North Africa.
The platform’s customers tripled last year and edged up sales by 70 percent, up from conventional selling methods. ExpandCart hires 300 employees.
Regarding the platform’s five-year plan, Amr Shawqi said that the company seeks to increase its customers to 500,000 by means of putting in place new mechanisms that expedite and simplify the process of setting up websites with the aim of reaching out to a broader base of customers.
” ExpandCart’s cutting-edge advantage is its technical support team which helps solve any problems encountering owners of stores all day long, as the platform provides no hosting limit, with all websites founded by the platform can host any number of visitors.
Amr Shawqi launched ExpandCart at the age of 27 and managed in a short period of time to become a founder of one of the Arab World’s first and biggest electronic stores platform.
Shawqi advises the youth to start their own businesses as early as possible, hone their skill and introduce new innovative ideas.
