The E-Commerce

Philippines - E-Commerce Market Outlook & Retail Trends in 2023

Last Updated: January 18, 2023
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Welcome! Here at OOSGA, we've combined insights from our partners across various markets and our own hands-on experience to bring you this brief. If you are interested in partnering with us on our e-commerce support or research within Philippines, let us know!

The Outlook

What's the Outlook of The E-Commerce Market in Philippines?

In the time period leading up to the pandemic, online retail sales represented a small portion of the overall market, around 3%. However, due to the effects of lockdowns, this share increased to nearly 4% in 2020, and an estimated of more than 5% by the end of 2022, owing to the impact of lockdowns and change in behavior for many Filipino.

Despite this growth, the Philippines is expected to lag behind other countries in the region in terms of online retail, due to factors such as slow internet speeds, inadequate logistics, and relatively low internet penetration. Only about 54% of the population is estimated to have used the internet in 2021, which is lower than the global average. 

However, there is a significant potential for online retailers to reach the 92 million active social media users in the Philippines, who access the internet primarily through their smartphones. The government estimates that e-commerce contributed 3.4% to the country’s GDP in 2020, and this is projected to increase to 5.5% in 2022.

The government has attempted to boost the sector in the past, but these efforts have fallen short of the target set in the e-Commerce Roadmap 2016-20, which aimed to have the sector contribute 25% to GDP by the end of the plan’s time horizon. In 2020, the government passed the Internet Transactions Act to improve regulation in the sector, but implementation has been hindered by issues such as resistance from e-commerce platforms to provisions that would hold them liable for products that do not comply with existing laws.

Table of Contents
Philippines - E-Commerce & Total Retail Sales | Billion $
Philippines - Retail & E-Commerce Growth | %
Philippines Retail, Value Added | (% of GDP)
Philippines E-Commerce Penetration Rate | (% of Total Retail Sales)

The Platforms

What's The Landscape of E-Commerce Platforms in Philippines?

Online marketplaces like Lazada, Shopee, Zalora, Ebay, and Kimstore have been becoming increasingly popular in the Philippines since the onset of the pandemic. Lazada, which is owned by Alibaba in China, has been making its products available to customers in the ASEAN region through its Taobao platform. Additionally, online grocery shopping has also seen an increase, with delivery companies like Foodpanda partnering with 7-Eleven stores. With the rise in online shopping, digital payment services have also seen a boost. The market is currently dominated by two players, Gcash and Maya, with Gcash having 60 million users and Maya boasting 47 million registered users. With a large youth base in the Philippines, there is potential for convenient credit facilities such as “buy now, pay later” schemes to be successful.

The Trends

What Are Some Retail Trends in Philippines?

3rd-party platforms dominating the growth: Since the outbreak of the pandemic in 2020, the e-commerce market in the Philippines has grown rapidly, with a majority of this growth being captured by major e-commerce platforms. This is due to their established IT infrastructure and user-friendly interfaces, which give them an advantage over local competitors. However, local retailers are also seeing growth, with companies like SM Retail reporting a 600% increase in online sales growth in 2020, and the SSI Group reporting e-commerce sales four and a half times larger than in 2019. These retailers have invested significantly to continue improving their e-commerce offerings.

Expanding Categories: The pandemic has led to changes in consumer purchasing behavior in the Philippines with more people opting to buy essentials online. Digital platforms have had to prioritize easy and convenient access to everyday essentials, leading to a 15-fold increase in categories such as food staples and cleaning supplies. Retailers have adopted the use of personal shoppers to meet the needs of consumers looking for ways to avoid person-to-person contact. Examples of this include SM Retail launching a concierge service and Rustan’s Department Store launching a Personal Shopper On Call service. Despite the trend of personal shoppers, e-commerce platform Shopee broke a record by selling 12 million items in the first 24 minutes of its 12.12 year-end sale in 2020.

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Finance Environment

9.1% of Customers Shop on The Internet

In Philippines, There are about 1.9% of people use credit cards, and 21% of people use debit cards. While there are 9.1% of people purchase on the internet, there is only 7% of people with online banking accounts.

Source:World Bank, Payment Service Providers, eMarketer

% with financial accounts

% with credit cards

% with debit cards

% get paid through digital channels

% buy on the internet

% with internet banking

% pay bill through online

% E-Commerce Penetration

Weekly Purchases

What E-Commerce Users in Philippines Purchase on a Weekly Basis?

Source: Statista Digital Market Outlook

Driving Factors

For Consumers in Philippines, What's The Main Drivers For Using E-Commerce?

Source: GWI.com (Q3, 2021)
% of respondents think is their main drivers | Multi-select survey

What Does Consumer Goods E-Commerce Look Like in Philippines?

There is 43.31 million consumer goods e-commerce users in Philippines, and they spend total of around 16.79 billion USD dollars in 2021. That makes a per capita spending on consumer goods e-commerce of around  388 USD. Also, in those e-commerce users, about 31.8% of them purchase through their mobile phone.

Philippines - Consumer Goods E-Commerce Sales | Million $

Travel E-Commerce Landscape in Philippines

Source: Statista Digital Market Outlook 2021
Philippines - Travel E-Commerce Sales | Million $

Digital Media Landscape in Philippines

Source: Statista Digital Market Outlook 2021
Philippines - Digital Media E-Commerce Sales | Million $

Reference

  • Retail Sales & E-Commerce Penetration: eMarketer, Edge By Ascential, Euromonitor Retail Passport
  • Currency: Based on IMF Data 2022/12
  • Consumer Behavior: Statista Digital Market Outlook
  • Retail Channels: Euromonitor, Local Association, Financial Reports (Of Relevant Retailers)
  • Data Compilation: OOSGA.org
  • Analysis: OOSGA CR Team Analytics

E-Commerce Roadmap: The Department of Trade Industry

SM Retail:  2020 Annual Report 

Author: Consumer Research Team

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