The emergence of an e-commerce platform for Thai business is no surprise these days. Now I STEEL THAI has created an online platform to allow manufacturers to sell their own branded products, making it one of Thailand’s first open e-commerce platforms where all brands can participate and sell their products on the site.

I STEEL THAI COMPANY LIMITED and associated website www.isteelthai.com was established in September 2018 with the aim of create an intermediary e-commerce platform for sellers and buyers of steel. The online third party platform was created by the Ouyeel International group of the Baosteel Company, fulfilling a need to change and upgrade the organisation.

I STEEL THAI COMPANY LIMITED founder Chien Yuan Tai has over 15 years’ experience in Thailand’s steel industry, and is confident in establishing a company which aligns with the modern digital era: “Thai people have long used the internet and are increasingly doing their shopping online, and the steel industry should also take the opportunity to go online. My goal is to create an e-commerce platform to make steel trading in Thailand more convenient by bring sellers and buyers closer together, making price negotiation easier and fairer by using our one-stop-service online platform.”

The platform provides a comprehensive list of services covering steel trading, including auctions, special product sourcing, logistics, payment and documents processes. We hope that it will help streamline doing business in the steel industry for both small and large enterprises.

I STEEL THAI operates under the B2B concept, being the party drawing buyers onto the platform. Therefore, the sellers’ products must be of high quality which buyers can inspect to before purchasing.

“Using our platform is simple and reliable for both buyers and sellers. Members must register before using the platform, and all companies that are registered with us must show their Value Added Tax registration certificate, DBD verification along with other requisite official and financial documents,” said the founder.

In operating an online business, the company employs the 3Cs principle: “Complex, Customer, Cash”, which are key elements of its business operations. Complex focuses on delivering services to a complicated market, as well as solving complicated and time-consuming problems such as logistics and document management for steel companies large and small.

Customer represents the emphasis on the importance of customer service.
I STEEL THAI wants their customers to always have a positive experience using the platform.

Cash refers to safe and trustworthy financial service. The online platform has a variety of financial service options to support both small and large steel companies. The platform’s financial service supports cash and credits payments via a stable and high-liquidity system supported by Thailand’s leading banks.

“The 3Cs are the aims we want to achieve. We are determined to create an industrial complex by presenting a comprehensive trading solution for the steel industry. Moreover, we believe that the key to good service is customer satisfaction, and so we always place them at the centre of our business. We also provided financial service via the unification of the steel industries and capital acquisition in order to create good cash flow and to encourage the development of an industry-wide financial environment.”

According to I STEEL THAI, Thailand uses approximately 17 million tonnes of steel per year. The company wants to capture 10% of this market – or about 1.7 million tonnes per year – within 3 years.

Additionally, the platform facilitate supports stock logistics as well as fluctuating product market prices with its full service warehousing management.

“We currently have about 50 users and 50-85 visitors to our platform every day, with 200-400 tonnes of steel bought and sold through the site daily.”

Over the past 6 months, I STEEL THAI has received positive customer feedback, with satisfactory trading volume and an ever-increasing number of users.

The founder cited an incident in late 2018 which exemplifies the company’s success as a one-stop service platform: “A car company contacted us to find a piece of steel. Usually, a steel maker takes 75-90 days to fill an order, but we were able to find a product with the same specifications which we sent to the car company in just seven days via air cargo.”

“I would like to invite everyone to try using our platform, which was created to make work easier and more convenient. I hope that people in the steel industry will be open-minded and are willing to embrace this industry transformation in order to grow well into the future, and create more trading opportunities to reach business goals together,” concluded a confident and optimistic Chien Yuan Tai.

For buying or releasing steel inventories with a click, please visit https://www.isteelthai.com

Source: https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/news/1636098/i-steel-thai-thailands-first-ever-comprehensive-e-commerce-platform-for-steel-trading