A B2B wholesale products portal shows the way
The current pandemic has highlighted the stark fragility of the modern supply chain with global reports of shortages of vital equipment and personal protective equipment (PPE).
While SMEs are the backbone of the Middle East’s business arena, the struggle to maintain stocks and supplies is tougher and more challenging than ever. Businesses must respond on a number of fronts simultaneously: while ensuring they act to protect worker’ safety, they must also safeguard operational viability, increasingly under strain from this supply-chain shock.
The UK’s Institute for Supply Chain Management, which conducts regular monthly economic surveys, found that nearly 75 percent of the companies it contacted in late February and early March of this year reported some kind of supply-chain disruptions due to the outbreak of the coronavirus currently ravaging the world.
Additionally, the report also revealed that 44 percent of the companies did not have a viable plan to deal with this kind of disruption.
The China factor
Keeping business afloat in these tough times means looking for alternative solutions, especially given the ubiquity of Chinese materials and manufacturing which are currently unavailable. Many small businesses simply don’t have the expertise, time or purchasing power to source new suppliers or find new channels.
That’s where WeMENA comes in. The online start up began trading in January 2020, identifying a need, with enormous foresight given the current situation, for a web-based B2B wholesale product marketplace.
The platform has seen a massive spike in recent weeks, offering more than 25,000 products from electronics to beauty care, automotive to food and grocery.
While many businesses are looking at how to help in the battle against the pandemic, WeMENA is helping to keep the supply chain moving. While market analysts warn of a slowdown, disruption, less variety, and less options available to customers, help is at hand via WeMENA.
Through a free platform membership, businesses can access products easily online, with help from the expert sourcing team and a massive, growing portfolio.
Enter WeMENA
The first platform of its kind in the region, the WeMENA team is currently working around the clock with recognised global manufacturers and distributors to get the essentials into the hands of businesses – including Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and hand sanitiser.
The platform is helping ensure many businesses in the region can remain open and continue providing stable employment to their staff in these most unsettling times, not to mention relieving the burden on the state.
Small grocery stores, for example, can take full advantage of WeMENA’s large supply sources by buying in smaller quantities with flexible payment terms.
Another example is a Dubai-based food production plant, which continues to remain open after purchasing essential PPE sourced from WeMENA for its staff.
It’s not only the products that allow businesses to continue working safely during the pandemic. WeMENA is a simple, straightforward gateway that brings bulk purchasers together with reliable, trustworthy manufacturers, distributors and wholesalers. Buyers include retailers, hospitality outlets, offices and the procurement departments of large organisations.
Multiple benefits
WeMENA provide sellers with hassle-free access to new business customers, while providing them with a reliable payment solution, while handling all delivery logistics and post-delivery customer service issues.
The platform provides buyers with easy access around the clock to the latest products at highly competitive prices, saving them the time and hassle of sourcing products, and visiting tradeshows and wholesale markets, something which isn’t possible in the current circumstances.
Of course, a vital point in maintaining the supply chain and supporting business in the region is not to stockpile goods. WeMENA can source and stock many essential items, if companies choose to over purchase certain items this will cause difficult demand spikes and provide issues for everyone.
BOX OUT 1
WeMENA is a B2B e-commerce marketplace which enables businesses to purchase products at wholesale prices from official distributors and manufacturers.
WeMENA assists with delivery, payment logistics and customer service, bringing efficiency savings to both buyers and suppliers.
The portal was founded in August 2019 and launched in December 2019 by Pali Banwait along with co-founders Anas Ibrahim, a senior experienced global legal counsel and Rajan Karwal, technology entrepreneur and solutions architect.
BOX OUT 2:
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Pali Banwait
The British entrepreneur’s entire career has been at the cutting edge of internet technology and e-commerce. He has two decades of entrepreneurial experience in the digital domain. He started his career aged 16 and was one of the UK’s youngest web project managers.
Following his extensive experience, he has been called upon to help conceive, launch and develop numerous e-commerce platforms.
WeMENA was co-founded by British serial entrepreneur Pali Banwait along with his two partners and set into operation in the UAE barely four months ago. It has been a runaway success in the light of the onset of the dreaded CoronaVirus and disruption of supplies and the supply chains in its wake. In this contribution, Banwait provides his narrative on the rise of WeMENA in this short span of time—Editor.
