Retailers join hands for Govt’s dual goal of containing COVID, boosting economy 14:58  HCM CITY — A message from a woman in Hà Nội, Phạm Hoa, saying “I have bought all foods and necessary stuff through zalo” has excited many of her friends in recent days, especially those in HCM City, where a semi-lockdown and social distancing continues for a fortnight. Trucks transporting litchi from Bắc Giang. Retailer companies are making efforts to give consumers convenient shopping condition during COVID-19 pandemic. — VNS Photo In recent weeks, after a new wave of the COVID-19 pandemic began, buying food and other essential goods for the house while still complying with the Ministry of Heath’s 5K message (Khẩu trang [facemask]- Khử khuẩn [disinfection] – Khoảng cách [distance] – Không tụ tập [no gathering] – Khai báo y tế [health declaration]) to protect themselves and their families is a common concern for housewives. Buying goods through zalo, the free messaging app, is not totally new but it was used only by small companies and sellers.  But during the social distancing now it has been adopted by large retailers too.  In Hoa’s case, she bought goods from MM Mega Market, a giant wholesaler with a presence around the country.  “As soon as I send a message asking for things I want to buy, they reply and then ship products to my door.” She said each MM Mega Market store has its own zalo number, and “You can easily buy food and other stuff.” MM Mega Market’s zalo order indicates clearly that retailers are making every effort to join hands with the Government to successfully achieve its dual goal of containing the outbreak and keeping the economy on track. Ensuring adequate supply of goods and diversifying the purchasing methods and shopping experiences are among a series of effective measures retailers have taken. Besides, thanks to all this, customers can buy stuff while maintaining the mandated social distance, and merchants are able to earn some income. Speaking to Việt Nam News, MM Mega Market said it was boosting multi-channel sales to offer its customers convenient and safe shopping amid the pandemic. “MM Mega Market is making every effort to join hands with the Vietnamese Government and businesses to achieve the dual goal of containing the outbreak and keeping the economy on track,” Trần Kim Nga, foreign relation director at MM Mega Market, said. Shopee, the country’s top e-commerce platform, announced to see an increasing number of consumers using e-commerce amid the pandemic. To help customers and merchants, it has launched a number of promotional programmes for essential items. A programme called ‘Ở nhà không khó, Ship Shopee lo’ offers many products with a 50 per cent discount and, more importantly, free delivery. It has been around for weeks and will continue. Through another programme, ‘Shopee Mart-Siêu Thị 0 đồng tại nhà’, the platform offers a number of promotional programmes on foods, products protecting health and essential goods with free shipping. “We have worked closely with brands and sellers during this period to ensure that we offer buyers a wide selection of genuine products ranging from everyday items to high-end items that satisfy their needs,” a representative of Shopee told Việt Nam News. “At the same time, to help brands, sellers and businesses overcome difficulties caused by the epidemic, we have also rolled out many benefit packages. There are many free benefits for the seller.” "Shopee is strengthening its logistics system," he said. “We are working closely with our transport partners and are optimising the operation of our warehouse system,” he explained. “These enable sellers and brands to be more efficient at fulfilling orders, allowing them to maximise sales and improve customer satisfaction even during peak shopping time.” To keep customers amused amid social distancing, many e-commerce platforms also combining shopping with entertainment programmes. Home entertainment has become a new form chosen by people across the country.  E-commerce platforms have constantly updated many forms of online entertainment such as game stores and interactive live-stream to amuse users.  For instance, the Lazada Supershow at the beginning of this month attracted 17 million views,  two million views on the Lazada app, a record number in the region, underlining the fact that Vietnamese users are embracing online shopping platforms for home entertainment. Lazada said the number of customers following LazLive during its summer festival, a function of livestream sale, increased four times year-on-year. The total value of orders on this channel increased 19 times. In addition to helping customers, Lazada also supports SMEs with e-commerce to help them overcome the pandemic-related difficulties. It helps farmers sell their produce on its platform. Each sector and company is making an effort to join hands with the Government in the fight agaisnt COVID, all with different plans but the same goals. — VNS