An e-commerce platform has been designed to allow Schneider Electric customers in South Africa to purchase products and solutions online.

Schneider Electric e-Commerce manager: Anglophone Africa Mandisa Guliwe says the company has engaged with authorised reseller partners from their distribution network to be onboarded as sellers on the platform. 

“The platform is mainly geared towards business-to-business transactions; however, we have now made it possible for business-to-consumer customers to purchase directly from authorised resellers. Through the Schneider Electric Marketplace, this option will be available to the market at launch,” says Guliwe.

She adds that while the Schneider Electric eCommerce marketplace is a new concept in the South African market, it is already active in a few other markets across the globe, with plans to scale to the rest of the Anglophone African countries.

“Primarily, it is about convenience. The platform allows customers to place orders anytime, anywhere, without the constraints of traditional business hours. ​It also offers better efficiency as buying can be done across multiple sellers, reducing waiting periods and doing away with the need to drive to different distributors due to stock unavailability,” says Guliwe.

Buyers also have access to online e-offers, ​bulk order processing order tracking, account credit purchases,​ cash, card and EFT purchases and ​customer support.

“While we are transitioning to a digital platform and experience, we are not leaving our partners behind. We offer a marketing development fund that partners can use for marketing and that now includes an e-commerce portion where they can also transition their business,” adds Guliwe.