Media Division, Ministry of Information and The Arts, 36th Storey, PSA Building, 460 Alexandra Road, Singapore 119963. Tel: 3757794/5
____________________________________________________________
SPEECH BY MR TANG GUAN SENG,
SENIOR PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY
FOR TRADE AND INDUSTRY,
AT THE SEMINAR ON E-COMMERCE FOR RETAILERS
21 NOV 98, 2.30 P.M., SINGAPORE PRESS HOLDINGS BUILDING
Mr Tan Chong Meng, Chairman of the Federation of Merchants
’ Associations, Singapore,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
1. I am very pleased to be invited to address this seminar on Electronic Commerce for Retailers. It is indeed timely that such a seminar is organised to highlight to retailers the growing significance of E-Commerce and the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead for the retail industry.
Challenges and Opportunities
2. A major challenge facing the retail industry is the changing lifestyles of consumers. Consumers are now more savvy, discerning and product quality conscious. They are demanding quicker and more convenient service. The advent of e-commerce has accelerated this desire. With the Internet, customers can now sieve through information and compare prices and quality of goods and services before they make their purchase. The availability of such information enables them to make informed decisions.
3. A recent survey by NCB showed that about 6% or 30,000 Internet users have made purchases on line. Although this is a small figure as e-commerce is still in its infant stage, we are confident that over time, e-shopping will gain popularity as shoppers begin to appreciate its benefits. There are more than 500,000 Internet users in Singapore currently and the potential for e-shopping is high. In the near future, e-shopping will become a part of our commercial landscape.
Benefits of Harnessing E-Commerce for Retailing
4.
E-commerce can play a major role in helping companies improve their systems and processes to reduce costs and turnaround time, build new capabilities and deliver better services to their customers. Businesses can use e-commerce to streamline and integrate processes along the entire business value chain, and create a strong competitive edge.
5.
For retailers who are more ambitious, e-commerce provides the opportunity to tap new and bigger markets beyond the domestic market, not just for new customers but also new suppliers and partners. You can then increase your variety of goods and services. This has been difficult in the past because of your small size and lack of resources.
6. For the majority of you serving the domestic market, especially in our HDB estates, you can use e-commerce to improve shop management, inventory control and communication with your suppliers. Indeed, I am heartened to note that the retail sector has begun to develop e-commerce systems as part of harnessing IT to develop its capabilities and enhance its productivity. Some good examples are ShopNET, an island-wide IT solution for small grocery retailers in HDB estates. ShopNET enables small retailers to conduct Point-of-Sale (POS) scanning, inventory control and EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) for procurement. It also has an accounting package that enables retailers to calculate their financial bottom lines at the end of each month. I am pleased to note that there are now more than 170 small retailers who have subscribed to ShopNET and are linked to more than 40 suppliers.
7. Another application that has been developed for the book and stationery retailers is BookNET. BookNET is a fully integrated computer solution with such features as Point-of-Sale and On-line Product Catalogue that resides in the Internet. Retailers can send their orders through the web and business transactions can be automatically updated into the retailers
’ system. More than 12 book and stationery retailers and 7 suppliers are using the system.
8. As these business-to-business e-commerce systems are already available, I urge all retailers, to subscribe to them. You need not re-invent the wheel. The next phase is to develop more business-to-consumer e-commerce, where consumers can make on-line purchases. The National Computer Board (NCB) and Retail Promotion Centre (RPC) will support and promote the development of the necessary infrastructure and applications for business-to-consumer e-commerce.
Infrastructure and Incentives for E-Commerce
9. As you can see, the government has been committed to developing the infrastructure for e-commerce. Singapore ONE -- a broad bandwidth and high speed Internet network that can support a wide range of end user applications today was launched in mid 97. The legal framework has also been established with the enactment of the Electronic Transactions Act in August this year. It provides the foundation for electronic records, contracts, and digital signatures. Systems for secure Internet transactions have also been put in place.
10. Recently, the government announced the Electronic Commerce Master Plan. The plan centres on the following five-point strategy:
11. The aim is to achieve S$4 billion worth of products and services transacted electronically through Singapore, and to have 50 per cent of businesses use some form of e-commerce by the year 2003.
12. In the area of incentives, the government has extended the Local Enterprise Technical Assistance Scheme (LETAS) to fund e-commerce activities. The PSB will provide 50% grants to cover the cost of adopting e-commerce for the first 500 local enterprises. The grant is subject to a cap of S$20,000 per company, and covers hardware and software purchases as well as subscriptions to e-commerce bureau services and basic connection charges to Singapore ONE.
13. Besides the financial incentive, NCB will also provide assistance in business planning, implementation and deployment of e-commerce applications and services, for companies that wish to get their e-businesses up and running. The e-commerce bureaus will also help SMEs tap ready-made e-commerce solutions to spread out the cost of subscription, as opposed to making lump-sum investments or building their own systems from scratch.
14. NCB has also initiated a regular series of online sales, called e-sale, or electronic-sale, where online retailers come together to offer attractive bargains to consumers and encourage them to try out electronic shopping. To date, three e-sales have been organised. The next one is planned for the Chinese New Year period in February 1999. More retailers are encouraged to participate in the event.
Conclusion
15. With the infrastructure and incentives in place, it is really up to you to take advantage of them. The retail trade associations can also play a greater role in helping members upgrade their operations using IT.
I also urge retailers to band together in sharing resources, and advertising and promotions so as to enjoy savings from economies of scale. There is no better time than now to upgrade your operations and invest in IT.
On this note, I would like to thank the Federation of Merchants
’ Associations for organising this seminar. I wish you all a fruitful afternoon.