Coupang: Taiwan Expansion & E-Commerce Landscape

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So I want to ask you a question about the company's investment in Taiwan in 2021. Do you know what prompted that decision? Because in speaking with investors, it wasn't clear until more recently that they were really going to invest in Taiwan. It seemed uncertain whether it would become a big, profitable entity in the medium to long term. What were the signals that made it clear to them that Taiwan had the potential to become a successful business in the medium to long term?

Taiwan is attractive because, unlike other countries, it doesn't have Amazon. The local competitor PChome was recently acquired by a local competitor. Momo is a tough competitor but doesn't seem eager to expand. Shopee is a behemoth but has a lot of baggage, mainly being a 3P marketplace with a chaotic customer experience. I believe Bom and the team see a long-term opportunity to bring a better ecommerce experience to Taiwan. There's no competitor well-positioned to capture the Taiwanese market, which requires steady returns. Momo isn't going to spend a lot to expand rapidly. Shopee is willing but has reputation and supply chain issues, including fraudulent activities.

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So I want to ask you a question about the company's investment in Taiwan in 2021. Do you know what prompted that decision? Because in speaking with investors, it wasn't clear until more recently that they were really going to invest in Taiwan. It seemed uncertain whether it would become a big, profitable entity in the medium to long term. What were the signals that made it clear to them that Taiwan had the potential to become a successful business in the medium to long term?

Looking at Taiwan's macro environment, public government stats suggest that roughly 10% or 11% of retail spending is online. Compared to other developed markets, that's low. Other countries might have 20%, South Korea 30%, and China and the US around 20% to 25%. There's plenty of market opportunity.

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Were there any competitors you thought were in a position to respond, or did you see any interesting responses during your time there?

I think the two responses to focus on are Momo and Shopee. Momo rolled out a membership program because we offer more attractive pricing. Their program focuses on discounting, which I don't necessarily think is the right long-term incentive, though it provides an immediate response. Momo did not specifically change their pricing but restructured their 3P marketplace. It's yet to be seen how effective that will be.

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