E-commerce has exploded in recent
years in Latin American and Caribbean countries. According to a study performed
by Tecnocom, sales have quadrupled in the region in just five years, generating
approximately 66.7 billion dollars (or 56.2 billion euros) last year. However,
high import tariffs, excessive bureaucracy and the lack of electronic payment
methods adapted to clients´ needs represent barriers for cross border commerce.
Companies like Amazon and eBay find themselves obligated to implement very
rigid international shipping policies which sometimes translate into a limited
offer of products, high shipping costs and long delivery times.
To improve this situation, the entrepreneur and business owner Anson Tou has
created Qempo, a web platform that connects Peruvian on-line buyers with
travelers who visit the country to facilitate international purchases and has
led to Tou´s recognition as one of MIT Technology Review, Spanish edition´s
Innovators Under 35 Latin America 2017. The way it works is simple: through the
platform, a client interested in making an international purchase can contact a
traveler with plans to visit Peru with extra space available in their luggage.
The traveler buys and brings the package to the client, and earns a commission.
In just a few years, Qempo has managed to reduce standard shipping costs by 50%
and delivery times by 80%. According to this young entrepreneur,
"companies like Fedex and DHL normally charge around 50 dollars
[approximately 40 euros] for a package weighing one kilogram [just over one
pound], which often doubles the price of the product." Given the high
costs associated with traditional shipping companies, the young Peruvian
started to look for alternative methods. Without an initial investment and based
solely on a technological forum and a simple, informative webpage, he began to
contact several clients casually. In just a few years, he had billed over half
a million dollars [or 424,000 euros].
Born into a family which immigrated to Peru from China during the 1980s, Tou
started helping out at the family restaurant at a very young age. The young
entrepreneur recalls: "My parents were great entrepreneurs. They taught me
the value of hard work." Helping during the restaurant services, he honed
his social skills and developed a strong desire to connect with other people.
These values are reflected in his business model. "Providing customers
with excellent service is our most important policy," he points out, and
it is one which helps him to differentiate his solution from other market
rivals.
At age 17, Tou moved to the United States to study International Business
Administration. From there, he launched an import service to send products to
Peru. Tou recalls: "Qempo started as a hobby — a favor to help my friends
and family who lacked access to many products from the United States."
With some prior experience in the world of customer relationships and business
management, Tou applied the knowledge acquired during his studies to his
company and, "almost without meaning to, Qempo became a business."
Peru is the fourth economy in Latin America with the highest sales tax in the
region, at 18%. This percentage, coupled with an ad-valorem tax, leads Peruvian
clients to pay almost double due to the customs costs paid by conventional
logistics firms. Tou and his team analyzed the complete import policy of the
Peruvian government as well as several other countries and found that there was
a huge difference in prices between passenger luggage and cargo shipments. The
entrepreneur explains: "We saw an opportunity to reduce costs and shipping
times. Our shipments take a week maximum and our travelers earn an average of
300 dollars [approximately 250 euros] per trip."
It hasn´t been easy going, though. "There have been several challenges.
One of the biggest was adjusting to the cultural differences between the United
States and Peru. These cultures are very different, and we need to adapt to
both to establish trust between clients," says Tou. And he adds: "We
have adapted our payment methods to offer the possibility to pay via bank
deposit and in cash. Not all clients are willing to buy online." At
present, Tou´s team is working with the Peruvian government to pay border taxes
before the trip begins in order to facilitate the bureaucratic process and
further reduce customs waiting times.
During the next few months, the team plans on launching Qempo in China,
something which the young Peruvian is extremely enthusiastic about given his
roots. In the future, Tou´s objective is to connect all of Latin America before
then expanding further globally.
"The concept of capitalizing on this available capacity in travelers´
luggage to transport merchandise offers a successful business model with great
potential to be applied to other countries," according to the business
development director at Corporación GPF (Ecuador) and jury member for the
Innovators Under 35 Latin America competition, Jeffry Illingworth.
