“Our top markets are Europe, US and Australia. In 2016, our total revenue exceeded USD 10million” -eBay’s top seller in Singapore, Watcheszon International.

We caught up Jeson to hear about Watcheszon’s online selling journey.

How it all started

Jeson and Jason founded Watcheszon in 2007. It all started by accident. Jeson was in the trading business and he was finding a way to clear old stocks. Within 3 weeks, they sold off 100 pieces from eBay!

“Imagine if you start a brick & mortar store, you’ll need cash and rental deposit. That’s at least S$100,000. If you started online, you just need a small inventory, maybe $1000 -2000. The start-up fund is low. A low risk business with little room for failure compared to a physical store. Your business runs all day 24/7. Low investment, yet comes with a global reach.”

Watcheszon sells electronic products in 4 physical stores in Singapore, online marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, Rakuten, Lazada, and its own web-store. They have expanded to include 5 new product categories into their portfolio.

Frustrations as a new seller

Before the eCommerce wave, scaling overseas was hard. There were limited resources. “I had to fly down to open a bank account overseas. Also, shipping and taxation were also complex”.

Today, “Internet has become the way of life” says Jeson. Online shopping has become the new norm. Moreover,  this convenience does not just apply to shoppers but online sellers. There’s full-fledged logistic services, wide choice of marketplaces and payment gateways to cater to sellers.

If you could start it all again, what would you do?  One, invest in more manpower. ‘I was a frog in a well’ Jeson exclaims. In other markets, they’ve seen bigger sellers with 2000 workers and million-dollar turnover. Two, be flexible with my product. ‘I was focused on one product’. Jeson learnt that bigger sellers were flexible and open minded, they adopted new product categories to grow the business.

Jason (middle) and Jeson (right) from Watcheszon at Let’s eBay with SIRS event.

Tips for new sellers

In Jeson’s summarised words:

• Start acting – “Try, if you don’t you wouldn’t know. Not starting out, that’s the failure.”
• Do your research (on product, price, competitors, markets). Find more beginner resources on our Online Seller Content Hub
• Start with something simple. A hobby? Do you like gardening?  “An eBay seller started selling seeds 10 years ago, they now have 3000 staff.”

• Keep adapting – ‘Your business model shouldn’t die off, adapt it.’
• Don’t give up so easily – ‘As long as your business isn’t dead, you can keep on going’
• Find something that keeps you motivated – “Your first sales will inspire u to go on. Don’t be so particular about the margin. Don’t give yourself so much pressure.”

‘What I’ve learnt’ interview series is brought to you by WorldFirst.

WorldFirst is a high-growth FinTech business specialising in international payments. Our mission is to create the world’s best platform for international trade through a unique payments ecosystem that connects people, businesses and online sellers wherever they are in the world.

If you’d like to stay connected to our eCommerce community, get in touch with us at worldaccountsea@worldfirst.com.

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