Think global, change lives: how tech firms can take on SE Asia
It may seem overwhelmingly large, but Southeast Asia can be a rewarding market for firms willing to get to grips with the market fundamentals
Southeast Asia may comprise 11 countries and 650 million people, but tackling this diverse market is achievable if companies have a global mindset and are willing to understand market fundamentals.
Modern businesses today were no longer constrained by geographical boundaries, and could easily reach international markets by launching apps on Google Play or the Apple store, said the co-founder and chief executive of e-commerce marketplace Carousell, Quek Siu Rui.
“You can launch an internet service anywhere in the world today, with Google Cloud, Amazon Web Services and so on,” Quek said. “Infrastructure, distribution and talent are truly global now and borders have been broken. We have to embrace a global mindset.”
While global technology companies of previous decades have mainly come from the United States, those of the future could come from Asia as more of the region’s massive population gained access to the internet thanks to affordable smartphones from China, said Ku Kay-Mok, managing partner of Gobi Partners in Southeast Asia.
You can launch an internet service anywhere in the world today
“In the context of Asia, besides technology, you need to have a huge impact on emerging markets [to be a world class company],” Ku said, adding that successful firms needed to have an impact on their customers’ lives.
