E-commerce platforms are becoming essential for D2C brands, enabling them to reach larger audiences and fulfill consumer demands more efficiently.

In India, 90% of commerce occurs in small mom-and-pop stores, and many aspiring entrepreneurs lack the capital to start their own businesses, which Meesho addresses by providing a platform for them to sell online.

The integration of social media and e-commerce is creating new opportunities for brands to connect with consumers and drive sales through targeted marketing strategies.

We aim to help small businesses globally, envisioning a platform where a small business in Norway can sell to consumers in Argentina, breaking down international barriers. For instance, we helped American farmers in Washington state sell almost 300 tons of cherries to China last year by pre-ordering online, which made consumers very happy.

I run Meesho, which is focused on bringing small businesses online, as e-commerce was primarily about smartphones and selling online at that time.

Projects like OpenBazaar illustrate the challenges of building decentralized platforms, as they require significant resources to develop both the underlying technology and user interfaces.

The e-commerce landscape in India is rapidly evolving, with a growing number of small businesses looking to establish an online presence, especially post-pandemic.

OpenSea started as a simple website that allowed users to buy and sell NFTs, focusing on a straightforward use case before adding more features.

Payment networks function as marketplaces, and while they are challenging to establish due to the chicken-and-egg problem, once solved, they can create very sticky businesses, as seen with successful companies like Airbnb and DoorDash.