Rocket Internet’s Amazon clone Lazada debuts in Southeast Asia
March 23, 2012 by Terence LEE
Rocket Internet is continuing its rapid-fire expansion into Southeast Asia. It has launched — that’s right — an Amazon.com clone called Lazada, in Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines. It will open in Malaysia soon.
Besides books, the e-store is selling home appliances, mobile devices, computers, video games, and more.
Lazada is just their latest in a string of copycats businesses; they have launched a Pinterest clone called Pinspire, and before that, a Zappos clone called Zalora.
The news was confirmed by GigaOm when a job ad was placed on job recruitment site Jobstreet Indonesia calling for a senior HR manager.
Rocket Internet’s activities have polarized the tech community.
While some have scolded them for being rip-offs — right down to the identical design details of the websites — as well as for their brutal corporate culture, they’ve also been praised for being efficient and masterful executors.
Whatever your opinion of them, it looks like their entry into Southeast Asia could give the local startups a run for their money.
Company: Rocket Internet
Rocket Internet is a Berlin headquartered company that is well-known for cloning successful online startups (usually from the US), replicating them elsewhere, and turning them into large, profitable businesses. It is active in Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Australia, New Zealand, Myanmar, Taiwan, China, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, India, and Pakistan.
View profile: RocketInternet More articles: RocketInternetFind out more about SGE’s research arm: SGE Insights, providing customized in-depth research reports to help you navigate the business of technology in Asia.
About The Author
Terence LEE - Editor
Terence writes mainly about technology trends and startups in Asia. He believes in crafting smart content: Not just a regurgitation of text, but well thought-out pieces that serve the reader using a combination of data, design, narratives, analysis, and visual impact. His articles have been published on Venturebeat, Yahoo!, Straits Times, Today, and The Online Citizen. He also co-founded NewNation.sg, a satirical news site covering Singapore affairs. Engage him on LinkedIn and Twitter.
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