Despite a large majority of companies selling globally, 20 percent remain choosing to stay within the domestic market. When asked what is required for these companies to take the step, Gülfem Toygar believes it is partly a natural business prioritization.
Many first focus on building their presence locally before taking the step internationally, and that is perfectly natural. Sellers who hesitate about export often underestimate how much easier it has become to reach international customers through digital commerce.
She also points out that bureaucracy complicates the process for many smaller players:
At the same time, we see that there are still several trade barriers within the EU's internal market that particularly affect small businesses. Regulatory complications, administrative burdens and different national interpretations can make cross-border trade significantly more complicated than it could be.
To reduce these barriers, the company offers the logistics service "Fulfilment by Amazon", which allows Swedish sellers to use the platform's European logistics network without building up their own supply chains in each individual country.
Local Growth and Visibility
Regarding the balance between domestic sales on Amazon.se, which launched in 2020, and growing exports, Toygar states that the platform's structure allows sellers to combine both. To drive local sales, the future strategy lies in optimizing basic e-commerce factors.
According to Toygar, the platform's focus is on improving the customer experience through range, price and delivery, as well as highlighting local companies. One initiative is a dedicated "Nordic Brands" store that aims to give Swedish brands increased exposure, both in Sweden and internationally.
Data Management and Private Labels
A central industry issue is the balance between the platform's role as a marketplace and as a direct competitor via private labels. Some e-retailers express concern that their sales data may be used to develop competing products. Gülfem Toygar responds to the criticism regarding how the company handles data:
We design our shopping experience to highlight the products that customers want to buy, regardless of whether they are offered by Amazon or one of our selling partners. We follow the same methods as many other retailers to develop our own brands, including the use of publicly available data.
She further emphasizes that they have internal restrictions on how seller data can be used in product development:
We do not use non-public data about individual sellers to determine which private label products we should launch, and our policy for protecting seller data is more comprehensive than that of any other retailer we know of.