Empowering women and supporting their businesses is the key to maximising Singapore’s economic potential, says Amazon Singapore in celebration of this year’s upcoming International Women’s Day (IWD)
Amazon Singapore revealed that research shows increasing gender equality in the workforce could add up to S$26 billion to the country’s GDP by 2025.
Hence, its founders have been persevering through challenges to create a better future for all by creating jobs and enabling financial independence in their communities to championing eco-friendly business practices.
Amazon Singapore hopes to inspire more entrepreneurs and consumers to #ChooseToChallenge gender stereotypes and empower local business owners, regardless of their gender, to sell online and scale globally by sharing their inspirational stories and unique product offerings on a dedicated storefront.
The dedicated storefront on Amazon.sg will showcase stories and products offered by 12 women-owned businesses over the next 4 weeks — from craft supplies to baby and maternity essentials.
“Women are a critical force for Singapore’s economic progress and the growth of their businesses fuels our collective success. At Amazon, we are committed to offering equal opportunities for all sellers to help them unleash their entrepreneurial potential, regardless of their gender and background,” said Bernard Tay, Head of Amazon Global Selling Southeast Asia.
“Amazon is proud to mark this year’s International Women’s Day by celebrating the resilience of women entrepreneurs and showcasing their success stories. We hope that their experiences will resonate with other entrepreneurs, encouraging them to #ChooseToChallenge gender conventions and grow their businesses globally with us,” he said.
In addition to the dedicated storefront, Amazon is teaming up with Enterprise Singapore to help local retailers, including women-run businesses, sell online and scale globally.
Enterprise Singapore will support these efforts through the Market Readiness Assistance (MRA) scheme, offering S$100,000 maximum per new country, for up to 70 per cent of eligible costs for overseas promotion, overseas business development and overseas country set up.
Female entrepreneurs can thus avail tools and resources to sell online with Amazon.sg, expand their business across Amazon’s 20 stores worldwide, and reach more customers anywhere.
Featured seller includes Beth Candice Wu, founder of local gift company HoneySpree; a social enterprise specialising in customizable mini honey jars.
“As an advocate for women upliftment and a mother myself, my mission has been to empower stay-at-home moms (SAHMs) to achieve financial independence while caring for their children,” said Beth.
The company employs SAHMs to ease their financial burden, giving back 30 cents to their network of SAHMs for every mini honey jar sold.
Beth decided to sell online and turned to Amazon for her logistics and order fulfilment needs to keep operational costs low and focus on growing her business by reaching more consumers.
Starting Friday (5 March), customers can read more about the journey and motivations of the featured entrepreneurs, shop their offerings on Amazon.sg and enjoy promotions on selected products as part of the IWD celebration.