Southeast Asian tech giant Grab is facing a difficult choice: should it focus on profitability or growth? This article explores the pros and cons of each strategy and discusses the potential outcomes for Grab. Ultimately, the decision of whether to focus on profitability or growth will depend on a number of factors, including the company’s financial situation, its competitive landscape, and its long-term goals.
Tag Archives: ecommerce
Grab’s Strategy and Cash Flow Question (1 of 4) (Tech Strategy – Daily Article)
Southeast Asia unicorn Grab is now public via a SPAC merger with Altimeter Growth Corp. The company trades on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “GRAB”. This is a really interesting company. There is a tremendous amount to like about its business. It has 2-3 platform business models that have strong-to-dominant positions in SE Asia: […]
How to Assess the Growth of Sea Limited / Shopee / Garena (Asia Tech Strategy – Daily Article)
In the past 3-4 months, Sea Limited stock price has fallen from $350 to $90 per share. That is interesting. The business model is as formidable as ever. It benefits from compelling long-term consumer spending growth trends in both SE Asia and Latin America. And, unlike Alibaba, Sea Limited is in +9 countries and is […]
7 Things Everyone Is Getting Wrong About Alibaba Singles’ Day (Tech Strategy – Podcast 107)
Singles’ Day is not just about e-commerce. It is also about user-facing innovation, such as live-streaming, metaverse, and NFTs. It is also about merchant-facing innovation, such as R&D and financing. And it is also about physical assets, such as supply-side scale and building a barrier to entry.
7 Things Everyone Is Getting Wrong About Alibaba Singles’ Day (Tech Strategy – Podcast 107)
Singles’ Day is not just about e-commerce. It is also about user-facing innovation, such as live-streaming, metaverse, and NFTs. It is also about merchant-facing innovation, such as R&D and financing. And it is also about physical assets, such as supply-side scale and building a barrier to entry.
Ozon Holdings and the Russia Ecommerce Growth Question (Tech Strategy – Daily Article)
A subscriber suggested I look at Russian ecommerce company Ozon Holdings (OZON). It’s outside of Asia Tech Strategy, but I thought it was an interesting company. And it raises an important question about why some countries develop so much faster than others in ecommerce. And that is really the key question for Ozon going forward. […]
How Hillhouse Capital Invests In and Digitizes Chinese Companies (Tech Strategy – Podcast 100)
Hillhouse Capital is a leading private equity firm that invests in China. The firm has a successful track record of investing in and digitizing Chinese companies. Hillhouse’s approach is based on three key principles: identifying strong management teams, investing in digital transformation, and building moats.
How Hillhouse Capital Invests In and Digitizes Chinese Companies (Tech Strategy – Podcast 100)
Hillhouse Capital is a leading private equity firm that invests in China. The firm has a successful track record of investing in and digitizing Chinese companies. Hillhouse’s approach is based on three key principles: identifying strong management teams, investing in digital transformation, and building moats.
How Pinduoduo Grew So Fast. And What’s Next. (Tech Strategy – Daily Article)
Pinduoduo (PDD) has really stood out in digital – both for its ability to break into a market dominated by Alibaba and JD and for the stunning speed of its growth. Founded in 2015, PDD has grown to +800M users in six years. It grew to +$9B in revenue. Upon reaching a +$100B market cap, […]
Pinduoduo, Etsy, and OTC: How Specialty Ecommerce Can Thrive Against the Giants. (Tech Strategy – Podcast 97)
In this podcast, Jeffrey Towson discusses how specialty ecommerce companies can thrive against the giants. He identifies five key factors for success: differentiated user experience, competitive logistics, strong competitive advantage, clear path to operational cash flow, and avoidance of markets and situations that are attractive or strategic for the major ecommerce companies. He argues that specialty ecommerce companies can succeed by focusing on specific niches and providing a superior user experience.