Lapasar’s procurement marketplace flattens the playing field for small players

When someone tells you: “Forget it, you will never make this business profitable, don’t risk it,” would you listen to them or just keep going? Thinesh Kumar, the CEO of Lapasar, did both simultaneously; he listened to the advice whilst still moving forward. Just like what people always say – when life gives you lemons, make lemonade (perhaps add some sugar in it too).

Lapasar started in 2017 as a B2B shopping platform, similar to Lazada and Shopee to essentially bring the convenience of B2C e-commerce services to corporate clients looking to buy office needs and supplies. The idea is to make procurement faster and cheaper, eliminating the need for tenders. More importantly, Lapasar is designed to remove barriers for small businesses to get big clients.

When Covid-19 hit, just like everyone else, Thinesh reckoned they were hitting rock bottom, since most companies were working from home, possibly leading to decreasing demands for their supplies. He therefore pivoted Lapasar to adapt to the opportunities thrown up by the pandemic and today, the startup is a B2B procurement platform catering to mom-and-pop stores.

Tune in to tonight’s startup show, featuring the CEO of Lapasar, Thinesh Kumar, where he talks about his personal journey prior to starting a business, and things that shaped his entrepreneurial journey, as well as the following:

The journey of Lapasar and how he grew his business to about RM300 million revenue this year.
Challenges of small retailers and how Lapasar could help them.
Their logistic management and the cost associated with supplying the small retailers.
Their technology and how it helps evolve their business.