Digital consumers in Vietnam and Thailand show greater willingness to try new stores they’ve never heard of before, because of unique products and good deals, according to the report “Digital Consumers of Tomorrow, Here Today” conducted by Facebook, Bain & Company.

Source: “Digital Consumers of Tomorrow, Here Today” report conducted by Facebook, Bain & Company. Screenshot: NM

Meanwhile, consumers in Malaysia and Singapore are more reluctant to do so. Regionally, the percentage of people open to trying new stores has gone up slightly to 47%, according to the report.

The report also revealed that 69%, 67% and 51% of consumers in respective Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia have switched their most purchased brands in last three months. Reliability and value are the most cited reasons for switching brands and also for switching websites.

Across Southeast Asia, electronics and accessories; clothing, footwear and accessories; personal care and beauty; household, appliances and furnishings saw at least a 1.4-time increase in online retail penetration from 2019 to 2020. However, the most dramatic growth came from groceries, which achieved a 2.7-times growth in online retail penetration as more people became  receptive to buying them online, the report wrote.

Source: “Digital Consumers of Tomorrow, Here Today” report conducted by Facebook, Bain & Company. Screenshot: NM

In the past three months, the majority of recent first-time online purchases have been in grocery and food delivery, highlighting the impact of social distancing measures on consumer behavior in the region. Specifically, the number of Vietnamese grocery shoppers who cite online as their most used channel has gone up by 1.5 times, from 21% of consumers in 2019 to 32% in 2020. 

E-commerce landscape booms but remains highly fragmented. In 2020 Vietnamese digital consumers shopped at an average of 5.2 websites, up from 4.0 in 2019 - a one-year increase of 30%. A fierce battle is waged between many of the large online shopping companies in the region as they fight for their market share. 

Source: “Digital Consumers of Tomorrow, Here Today” report conducted by Facebook, Bain & Company. Screenshot: NM

In comparison, food delivery sees a less fragmented landscape. In Vietnam, average number of food delivery platforms used per respondent is 2.0 while the number in Indonesia and Singapore is 1.7 and 1.8, respectively.

Source: “Digital Consumers of Tomorrow, Here Today” report conducted by Facebook, Bain & Company. Screenshot: NM

With such the digital trends, e-wallets saw a surge in popularity even as preference over all other payment methods including cash and electronics ones.