Think BIG Digital aims high with newly launched eStore

KUALA LUMPUR: Think BIG Digital Sdn Bhd’s unit, AirAsia BIG Loyalty, expects its newly launched eStore to contribute about 30% to total income by next year.

Think BIG Digital chief executive officer Datuk Eddy Leong said the eStore was projected to hit full scale by the second quarter of 2018.

“The technology is already there, it is a matter of signing up all the partners and to roll it in different countries.

“Today marks the launch for members in Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, while the rest like the Philippines, Singapore, India and more would follow in the first and second quarter of next year,” he told reporters after the launch of the eStore here.

Leong said the AirAsia BIG Loyalty eStore currently allowed about 13 million BIG members in Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia to shop online from over 150 lifestyle and travel brands – such as Uniqlo, Digi, Hotel.com and 11Street – via its platform known as airasiabig.com.

He said shopping on the eStore had expanded the ways in which members could earn BIG points easier, faster and better than they fly, adding that although members flew occasionally, shopping is an everyday routine.

Leong said BIG Loyalty new members increased by 10,000 daily with over 167,000 web traffic, and the company saw potential growth in this, with the fastest membership growth coming from China as the budget airline had the largest footprint in the republic.

He said the membership is currently led by Malaysia and Thailand, with the Chinese members at third position.

However, he projected the Chinese membership to overtake the two countries by the middle of next year.

On investment in eStore, Leong said the company did not fork out any but would be able to generate income through commissions paid by the partners for traffic coming through the eStore.

“We have high traffic which could help partners grow, so it’s a win-win situation,” he said.

He added that the commission would be passed down to members by giving them BIG points, which in turn could be used to purchase flight tickets and other products in the future.

Think Big Digital is a joint venture between AirAsia, Canada-based loyalty analytics firm Aimia Inc and Tune Money. — Bernama