Shopping online has become a frequent and favorite activity of users, so it is normal to see that there is a wide range of online sales sites. We have already talked before about the history of Mercado Libre, one of the most popular eCommerce sites in Latin America, but this time we will know a little of its history in Venezuela.
Mercado Libre is an e-commerce and online services platform founded in Argentina in 1999, but as the years went by and the popularity of online shopping grew, this project was extended to other regions of Latin America.
Mercado Libre’s history in Venezuela has been marked by the country’s economic and political challenges. Although it has faced obstacles due to the crisis, the platform has tried to adapt to the circumstances and continue providing online services to Venezuelan users.
It began operating in Venezuela in 2005, just as the country was experiencing an economic boom and there was a growing interest in e-commerce. The platform offered Venezuelan users the opportunity to buy and sell a wide variety of products online, from electronics, clothing, household goods, toys, appliances and much more. After years of continued growth, in 2019, Mercado Libre announced that due to operational and economic difficulties in Venezuela, it would reduce its operations in the country and close its local distribution center. This was part of a broader strategy to focus on more profitable and stable markets in Latin America.
In any case, the pandemic marked a before and after in its evolution in the country. Thus, in 2021, Mercado Libre Venezuela experienced a 50% growth in revenues compared to the previous year. William Caballero, general manager of Mercado Libre Venezuela, explained in an interview with iProup that the company boosted the growth of all types of companies, advising them throughout their careers, helping them to consolidate their business and improve their sales. He also indicated that some of the sellers who started on the portal later managed to open their physical stores. At that time, the platform already had 254,000 local sellers.
Mercado Libre Venezuela’s portal and app follow the same design as in the rest of the countries where it operates, allowing you to browse among household items, clothing, services, real estate and more.
In the midst of a complicated environment due to the accelerated inflation in Venezuela, Mercado Libre took measures to adapt to the circumstances. The platform implemented different strategies, such as adjusting buying and selling limits, establishing restrictions on certain product categories and adjusting prices according to the exchange market.
But how do Venezuelan users buy?
Although the marketplace sought to partner with payment platforms, the most functional method for the country’s economic dynamics was to establish direct agreements between sellers and buyers. This means that in order to purchase an item through Mercado Libre, the platform carries out all the steps to coordinate payment and delivery. The seller informs the buyer which are the payment methods it handles and delivers the order through its own parcel service, not that of Mercado Libre.
Although there are payment options for premium users to access this subscription, which gives them better visibility to their products, Mercado Libre Venezuela does not have the Mercado Pago system enabled nor does it receive the money from the buyers, that is to say, it does not work as an intermediary.
Package delivery times and shipping systems usually depend on the seller. Each seller must be in charge of delivering the item to the customer. However, there is currently a section called Mercado Envíos, a cost calculator with which the buyer can find out how much the shipment will cost and compare it among the active logistics companies.
To use this tool, the seller must print and paste on the package a label that is generated after the sale. Then, he must take the package to the corresponding shipping agency selected by the buyer.
Once the buyer registers with Mercado Envíos, the seller will be able to validate the payment record in your Mercado Envíos order manager.
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