ASTANA – The last week of January was full of events for Kazpost, Kazakhstan’s postal service.
On Jan. 24, they launched the country’s first e-commerce centre. The next day, Kazpost Chairman Bagdat Mussin was transferred to a position at the General Prosecutor’s Office, but before leaving he presented 15 projects for 2017 intended to continue Kazpost’s innovative development.
Bagdat Mussin
Over the last several years, Kazpost has undergone rapid change, helping to realign its reputation. The launch of the e-commerce centre in Astana was one of the many results of its new, forward-thinking identity. Such centres are planned to be opened in all major cities of Kazakhstan.
“The e-commerce market is growing year on year, and the volume of parcels ordered online grows by about 20 percent annually. It affects the level of convenience and speed of service. Previously, our corporate clients had to run from floor to floor searching for documents, accountants. Now there is a separate office, where they will receive high quality service in a short time and will get all the necessary range of services in one centre,” said Mussin at the event.
For the convenience of customers, there is a special area for consultations for corporate clients, a meeting room and an area for reception, packing and processing orders. The new centre will simplify the difficult process of registering parcels ordered online.
“Entrepreneurs are using all possible tools to bring their businesses online. After analysing the situation, Kazpost realised the need to open a separate centre for servicing entrepreneurs in the field of e-commerce, to provide quality service to existing online shops, as well as tools to create a successful online business for our offline entrepreneurs,” Kazpost said in comments given by its press service to The Astana Times.
The e-commerce centre is not only about storing, sorting and delivering goods. Kazpost also offers advertising services that send mailings to target audiences. Entrepreneurs can determine the audiences themselves.
“Currently, the company is working on products to add a payment and delivery function to an existing site or to create a new online store with the customer’s design and name,” stated the press service.
Postmarket.kz, another Kazpost project, is an online store designed to reduce the distance between urban and rural areas. It is in demand in the countryside, since there is no access to big brand goods there.
“It works same way other online platforms work. Customers can pay for goods online or offline in cash in the office of Kazpost. Goods are delivered throughout Kazakhstan and abroad,” Kazpost explained.
Postmarket.kz is also a solution for entrepreneurs who want to bring their sales online, while not spending time and money on site development, online payments and courier delivery.
In other plans, “package supermarkets” will be launched across the country for easy sending and receiving of parcels, as well as special self-service drop-off points for sending large numbers of letters. The company is also creating a network of self-service payment terminals where customers will be able to pay their bills.
