The eCommerce Africa Conference & Exhibition was more than just another ecommerce event, it was designed with those entrenched in ecommerce in mind. Last week, leaders in the industry were met with a tailor-made agenda that was both current and topical. The anticipated event brought together senior-level ecommerce and marketing professionals from all major industries, sharing their ideas, strategies and visions of the ecommerce space.
The event took place from 3 – 4 February 2015 at the CTICC in Cape Town and successfully offered a world-class exhibition coupled with a unique conference program, proving the event to be an industry success. A few highlights mentioned by attendees included the tech workshops, plenty of networking opportunities, and supplier demonstrations, all aimed at putting the spotlight on the future of payments as a cashless society.
One of the key discussions at this year’s inaugural event was what the future landscape of ecommerce looks like and whether the smaller players can survive and thrive taking into account the impact of POPI compliance and data collection on the ecommerce landscape.
Shannon Mackrill, joint managing director of event organisers Kinetic says, “The creation of this world-class ecommerce conference in South Africa was aimed to educate, inform and inspire entrepreneurs, businesses and investors. Providing a space to embrace and navigate the ecommerce landscape leading to a better understanding of what it means to truly deliver exceptional experiences within it. We are confident that we successfully delivered on this and look forward to the next event in 2016”.
In providing this unique platform, industry professionals and attendees were able stay up to date with the latest developments in the field, as well as given the opportunity to learn from and connect with influential industry leaders, gaining ideas and strategies for those looking at setting up an ecommerce business or those taking their current online business to the next level.
Attendee, The Green Smoothie Company said the event was insightful and that they’ll be using all knowledge shared to improve their customer shopping experience.
Over 30 solution providers offered best-of-breed technology, applications, and solutions to help businesses build a more robust ecommerce site, attract and convert web traffic, and deliver a greater customer experience.
Leigh Andrews, blogger, says, “The event was truly one of the best conferences I’ve been to! Great content and venue.”
Industry giants in attendance included, to name a few; Simdul Shagaya, Founder konga.com / dealdey.com, Paul Galatis of Yuppiechef, Jaco Jonker from bidorbuy.co.za, Colin Fleming, Massmart, Efi Dahan of PayPal, and Luke McKend from Google South Africa, Andre de Wet from Pricecheck and Stephan Ekbergh from Travelstart; all offering their take on successfully utilising current technologies to engage in the online space and further improve and deliver on ecommerce expectations and strategies.
During his presentation at the conference, Justin Drennan CEO of wantitall.co.za mentioned that in the last 2 years, ecommerce boomed and that a lot of couriers are still yet to change with the times. “South Africa should get basics right” he says, adding that we need to first discover what the challenges of handling luxury goods delivery and returns are in the sub Saharan Africa region in order to develop and deliver on a strategy for ecommerce solutions.
Some exhibitors and sponsors include industry giants such as; FNB PayPal, Dimension Data, iGroup, Trustwave South Africa, Amazon Web Services, PayFast, Nedbank, BuyDirect, RAM Couriers, and AWA Digital and eSolutions.
Event gold sponsor Dimension Data said, “The focus of IT today is more on automation and creating a “factory” environment that is agile and can be used on-demand.”
Topics at the event included an overview of business and ecommerce in Africa from a macro point of view, the progression of ecommerce – from brick to click and mobile, driving customer engagement and purchases, and optimising shopper to buyer conventions in a global ecommerce economy, just to name a few.
The eCommerce Africa Confex 2016 will be held on 17 – 18 February 2016.
