How Shopee Beat the Giants: The Late Starter That Conquered Southeast Asia
When Shopee launched in February 2015, Lazada had been operating since 2012 with backing from Alibaba. Tokopedia had been
When Shopee launched in February 2015, Lazada had been operating since 2012 with backing from Alibaba. Tokopedia had been in the market since 2009. The Southeast Asian e-commerce market already had established players.
By 2024, Shopee commanded 52% of Southeast Asia’s e-commerce gross merchandise value. Lazada held 15% market share despite years of investment from Alibaba.
The Mobile-First Strategy
In 2015, Lazada and Tokopedia focused primarily on desktop experiences. Shopee launched as a mobile app first, given Southeast Asia’s high mobile penetration rate.
Over 95% of orders on Shopee are made via mobile. The app interface prioritised user-friendly design, with essential functions like product searches, browsing categories, and placing orders easily accessible on small screens. Features such as in-app chat and social sharing enabled users to communicate with friends and family regarding purchases.
Gamification and Engagement
Shopee introduced games like Shopee Shake, where users could earn coins by shaking their phones during specific times. Shopee Shake was played over 70 million times during Shopee 9.9 Super Shopping Day.
Research shows that gamification strategy applied through features like Shopee Tanam included six elements: social interaction, sense of control, goals, progress tracking, rewards, and prompts.
Daily flash sales, coin collection systems, and interactive features created engagement mechanisms that increased app usage frequency.
Localisation Strategy
Markets like Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines, Shopee launched the Shopee Celebrity Club, allowing the platform to localise marketing efforts and curate collections for local audiences.
In Indonesia, Shopee launched “Shopee Barokah” to offer Shariah-compliant products and services. In the Philippines, they partnered with local celebrities for exclusive collections. Each market received tailored product categories, marketing campaigns, and operational strategies.
Free shipping, extensive payment options, and prices that matched local purchasing power made Shopee accessible to mass markets.
Vietnam: Market Dominance
In the first quarter of 2024, Shopee represented 67.9% market share among e-commerce platforms in Vietnam. The platform had the highest number of sellers, exceeding 262,000. By the second quarter of 2024, Shopee captured 71.4% of the GMV market share.
79% of Vietnamese internet users reported using Shopee for online shopping in the second quarter of 2024. Vietnam’s e-commerce market reached VND 71.2 trillion (US$2.8 billion) in the first quarter, up 78.7% year-on-year.
Lazada’s market share in Vietnam declined to 5.9% and Tiki to 0.7%. TikTok Shop held 23.2% market share.
Thailand: Leading Position
As of the first quarter of 2024, Shopee held approximately 49% market share in Thailand’s e-commerce market. Lazada held 30% and TikTok Shop 21%.
In February 2024, Shopee’s sales in the Thai market were 650 million, whilst Lazada’s sales revenue reached 110 million. Thailand and Malaysia were the fastest-growing markets with approximately 22% and 19% year-on-year growth respectively.
In Thailand, over 50% of consumers used ShopeePay, 37% used cash, and 11% used credit cards. Electronics and accessories generated 32% of Shopee Thailand’s revenue, followed by apparel and fashion products.
Logistics Investment
In 2021, CEO Forrest Li initiated logistics expansion when surging pandemic demand exposed critical delivery bottlenecks. The company invested in building SPX Express, its own logistics arm.
SPX Express operates thousands of neighbourhood-based collection points, often run by retirees, homemakers, and students. These are embedded in public housing estates, warungs (Indonesian family-run shops), and convenience stores.
By 2024, SPX Express captured 25% of Southeast Asia’s logistics market, achieving 90% next-day delivery rates in Singapore and two-day delivery for 50% of orders across the region. The company reduced logistics cost per order by 6% in Asia through this model.
Social and Influencer Integration
By 2025, live streaming accounted for 15% of Shopee’s physical goods order volume in Southeast Asia, with affiliate-led livestreams boosting orders by 240% during peak periods. The platform partnered with YouTube, embedding Shopee product links into over 4 million videos. In Indonesia, YouTube-driven orders grew sixfold.
Shopee Live allowed sellers to broadcast directly to buyers. In 2019, Shopee signed Cristiano Ronaldo as brand ambassador. The campaign featuring Ronaldo dancing to “Baby Shark” reached 19 million people. It doubled Shopee’s gross orders and tripled e-commerce sales during that period.
Financial Results
Within a few years, Shopee averaged 281 million visits per month. By Q2 2023, Shopee remained the largest online marketplace in Southeast Asia with traffic share ranging from 30% to 50% across the region.
In 2024, Shopee commanded 52% of Southeast Asia e-commerce GMV, compared to 19% for TikTok Shop and 15% for Lazada. The platform reported $14.8 billion in revenue for 2023, with gross merchandise value reaching $100.5 billion in 2024.
Shopee posted positive adjusted EBITDA for two consecutive years. Sea Group, Shopee’s parent company, reported an annual profit of $447.8 million in 2024, almost three times larger than its first annual profit in 2023.
Market Position
Shopee had 295 million users in 2023. About 60% of Shopee users are based in Southeast Asia, with over 100 million users in Indonesia. The shopping app was downloaded 144 million times in 2023.
Of the $14 billion GMV added in 2024 across Southeast Asia, Shopee accounted for $12 billion. Lazada’s declining market share was attributed to increased competition and challenges in technology and logistics, with frequent management changes. Alibaba invested approximately $7.47 billion into Lazada since 2016.
In 2022, Shopee pulled back from several countries to cut costs. It ended operations in Europe with the closure of its facility in Poland, and backed out of several countries in Latin America.
Market Characteristics
Southeast Asia platform e-commerce gross merchandise volume grew by 12% in 2024 to reach $128.4 billion. Indonesia’s market represented $56 billion (44% of GMV). Southeast Asia shipped 43.6 million e-commerce parcels daily in 2024.
E-commerce penetration was 12.8% of retail in 2024. Live-streaming and video shopping accounted for 20% of platform GMV. Brands accounted for less than 30% of Southeast Asia’s platform e-commerce GMV, compared to over 50% in China.
Sources
- Statista (2024). “Market share of e-commerce platforms based on gross merchandise value in Vietnam in 1st quarter 2024” – Vietnam market share data.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/1487682/vietnam-market-share-of-e-commerce-platforms/ - Momentum Works (2024). “Ecommerce in Southeast Asia 2024 Report” – Regional market share and competitive analysis.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/1536030/thailand-gmv-share-of-leading-e-commerce-platforms/
Bloomberg (2025). “Shopee’s Delivery Network Boosts Stock 300%, Helped By Retirees and Students” – SPX Express logistics model.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2025-08-10/shopee-s-delivery-network-boosts-stock-300-helped-by-retirees-and-students
