E-commerce sector giants from Turkey and abroad gathered at the World E-commerce Forum (WORLDEF) in the Turkish Mediterranean resort city of Antalya Tuesday.
Companies and shareholders convened for the three-day event to discuss several topics, including the entrepreneurship ecosystem, global marketplaces, and new trends in retail trade and digital marketing.
More than 50 Turkish and foreign sector professionals will give speeches at sessions during the event, which is hosting over 1,200 participants from 35 countries.
Addressing the opening ceremony, WORLDEF head Ömer Nart said the marketplaces being hosted by the event represent a $150 billion share of the global market.
"With the pandemic, new opportunities emerged for the e-commerce sector, this event was organized to benefit from these opportunities," he added.
Nart also said the WORLDEF meeting in the United Kingdom on Oct. 25-26 will mark the first time the forum is being held abroad.
"The whole European e-commerce ecosystem will gather at this event," he added.
Daniel Vines, the vice president of FedEx Europe, said e-commerce is growing at a tremendous pace and creating fantastic opportunities for everyone.
"To compete in this fast-evolving market, decision-makers are striving to deliver a seamless customer experience," he underlined.
100,000 participants
In a press release after the opening ceremony, Nart said Turkish businesspeople will be able to meet their counterparts at the London meeting. The U.K. has a 700 billion pound ($916.8 billion) e-commerce market.
The meeting will draw some 300 Turkish firms from several e-commerce sectors, including retailers, service providers, logistic companies, tech firms and marketplaces, he added.
On the meeting in Antalya, he said it is hosting around 1,500 participants this year, but the figure will reach 100,000 in five years.
In a few years, Turkey's e-export volume, which currently stands at $2 billion yearly, may increase by $3 billion to $4 billion thanks to its relations with the U.K., according to Nart.
Orxan Isayev, the CEO of ShopiVerse, a store provider for e-commerce firms, said the U.K. is a very attractive market for the Turkish e-commerce sector.
Turkish manufacturers, he said, are able to make low-cost but quality products and Turkish firms will be able to find opportunities to integrate with British and European companies at the event in London.