The main purpose of this research is to identify the impact of coronavirus (COVID-19) on the digital marketplace of Brunei. The realization of the potential of digital marketplace have enable it to develop and grow in application among start-ups and businesses in Brunei. COVID-19 has negatively impacted the micro, small, and medium enterprises of Brunei due to social distancing measures and crowd restrictions. Furthermore, the suspension of dine in services across the nation paved the way for food delivery service platforms to thrive during the pandemic. The platforms provide security, safety, and convenience to ensure reliability for consumers during the pandemic. Transitioning towards digital mediums was necessary to provide an intermediary for MSMEs and consumers to stay connected under difficult circumstances. A case study approach was used to get information from digital marketplaces that were thriving during the pandemic. The results indicate the impact towards digital marketplace during the pandemic are positive.
TopIntroduction
This research aims to determine the impacts of coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) on digital marketplaces in Brunei Darussalam. COVID-19 has a sweeping effect on e-commerce, technology, travel, and the economy. It has disrupted the operations of businesses, both physical and online marketplaces are affected by the pandemic. According to Andrienko (2020), the pandemic impacted the entire e-commerce sales, majority of individuals avoid going out, practicing social distancing, working from home and shopping from home through online mediums. The outbreak of the pandemic has driven consumers to fully utilize the Internet and making it their routine on a daily basis (Abiad, Arao, & Dagli, 2020) encouraging consumers to make purchases online. With the COVID-19 outbreak, the rapid use and application of online media have increased tremendously. Particularly, in the formality of staying at home, there are sweeping opportunities that digitisation can preserve the socio-economic network manageable (Dannenberg, Fuchs, Riedler, & Wiedemann, 2020). However, the effect of the pandemic will have substantial consequences on Brunei’s economy and society. Moreover, while most countries have enforced lockdown procedures to prevent the spread of the pandemic, Brunei has opted not to impose lockdown measures. Although Brunei did not implement lockdown protocols, strict rules and measures are introduced to combat the spread of the pandemic. Essential measures include the closure and lockdown of borders, closure of schools and education institutes nationwide, closure of mosques, closure of restaurants for dine-in purposes, and restriction on mass gatherings.
Measures implemented have affected daily operations of digital marketplaces in Brunei Darussalam. Mainly due to the closure and lockdown of borders where it has interrupted the supply chain of most businesses, including micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). The issues of sourcing products from outside of Brunei and also difficulties of selling their products online are some stumbling blocks imposed by the pandemic. Furthermore, there is a possibility bringing in products from outside of Brunei by sea, but it would have significant delays included, which will affect consumer spending from online marketplaces. Shops are limited to some customers at a time, dine-ins are not permitted, outdoor markets are prohibited, and social distancing is enforced in every aspect of Bruneians’ daily lives. Consumers’ fear also plays a significant part in not going to physical shops while opting for purchasing their daily needs through local online marketplaces. These virtual marketplaces have become in demand, providing food delivery services and online groceries shopping.
Recently, an increasing number of MSMEs are implementing digital marketplace into their business operations at the same time maintaining their physical stores. MSMEs began to realize the potential of utilizing a digital marketplace to sell their products and service at a lower cost. The trend began to shift during the pandemic where the government and MSMEs saw the opportunity to transition towards digital mediums of doing business in hope to control the spread of the pandemic while encouraging online transactions to minimize social interactions between two parties. During the pandemic, a number of digital marketplaces excelled mainly due to their ability to provide impactful services in difficult times for both businesses and consumers. These digital marketplaces are GoMamam, Domo, Community for Brunei and Pasarpbg, providing a virtual platform for businesses, vendors and freelancers to market their products and services online. Growth of these digital marketplaces prompted The Authority for Info-communications technology Industry (AITI) and Darussalam Enterprise (DARe) introduced ‘eKadaiBrunei,’ Brunei’s first e-commerce directory to aid consumers and businesses to identify and utilize credited e-commerce platforms. The national directory currently has 46 e-commerce platforms, 12 logistic firms and six delivery firms. In addition, the directory aims to provide safe and favorable channels to connect consumers with businesses.
The objective of this research is to identify factors impacting digital marketplace due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The rest of the research is organized as follows: the next section is the background of the research, followed by relevant literature review supporting the research, research methodology before presenting case studies and impacts towards digital marketplace. The last section of the research consists of the conclusion and recommendations for future studies.