Amazon eyes partnerships with Saudi SMEs, tech startups

July 27, 2021 00:00:00

DUBAI, July 26 (Arab News): Global conglomerate Amazon is looking to partner with more entrepreneurs and technology startups in Saudi Arabia, as it aims to boost the dedicated Saudi retail site it launched a year ago and interact more with the local ecosystem.

The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) annual report released this year found that entrepreneurial activity in the Kingdom increased by 24 per cent year-on-year in 2020, while a third of Saudis surveyed said they were keen on launching a business within the next three years.

At the same time, research platform Magnitt reported that the value of investment deals in the technology startup sector in Saudi Arabia last year soared by 55 per cent year-on-year to $152 million.

Amazon is aiming to capitalize on this fast-growing entrepreneurial ecosystem. "We're working with the local entrepreneurs and we see a lot of those in the Kingdom. I think the space has changed drastically," Ronaldo Mouchawar, vice president of Amazon Middle East and North Africa, told Arab News.

"You see a lot more venture capital, family offices investing in tech. So, we want to work with these companies and content developers and content owners," he added.

The Syrian entrepreneur co-founded online retail platform Souq.com in 2005, which was then sold to Amazon in 2017. While direct acquisitions on that scale may not be on the cards, Mouchawar said the global giant was interested in working more closely with Saudi partners.

"If not totally invest, definitely a lot of partnerships, working to make sure that whatever innovation that's working locally is available for our customers in the Kingdom," he said.

On June 17 last year, Amazon launched its dedicated Saudi website Amazon.sa, rebranding the old Souq.com website.

"This was kind of the first Amazon Arabic site. We had to put the infrastructure in Saudi Arabia - 14, 15 stations. We had about 2,000 people and trained them on the systems," Mouchawar said, adding that the site has performed well.