Turkish e-commerce giant Trendyol set to enter Azerbaijani market

ISTANBUL

Turkish e-commerce giant Trendyol is set to enter the Azerbaijani market, the Turkish industry and technology minister announced on Sunday.

The move will increase trade volume between Türkiye and Azerbaijan, Mustafa Varank said during TEKNOFEST, Türkiye's premier aerospace and technology festival underway in Istanbul.

Trendyol, the online marketplace that started in 2010, has signed a cooperation agreement with major Azerbaijani conglomerate Pasha Holding, and the two will form a joint company for e-commerce activities.

Varank said Türkiye-Azerbaijan relations are based on "one nation, two countries" concept, adding that bilateral economic relations have recently moved to a different dimension.

"I went to the opening of Trendyol's Berlin office before, we will now see Trendyol in Azerbaijan," he said. Trendyol set its foot in Europe by launching in Germany last year.

Caglayan Cetin, the head of Trendyol Group, said the two firms have taken the first step and the new website will start its operations as of May 3.

The firm, however, will fully start its activities in Azerbaijan once the infrastructure work is complete, he added.

Last year, the main source of foreign orders to Trendyol was Azerbaijan, Cetin said.

He shared that according to mobile data analysis platform App Annie, Trendyol was the most downloaded application in Azerbaijan in 2022.

Cetin stressed that the synergy created by Pasha Holding's experiences in the Azerbaijan market, and Trendyol's technology, logistics and production competencies will make significant contributions to the development of the Azerbaijan e-commerce ecosystem.

"In this sense, we wholeheartedly believe in the success of the strategic partnership established and its positive impact on brotherly country Azerbaijan," he said.

One of the priorities of Trendyol's future vision is entering foreign markets, he said, adding: "This initiative will strengthen the cooperative relations between Türkiye and Azerbaijan by facilitating cross-border trade and contributing to economic growth in the region."

Jalal Gasimov, the CEO of Pasha Holding, said interest in e-commerce in Azerbaijan is increasing thanks to the wide product range and competitive prices.

While this agreement will provide access to a wider product range at advantageous prices, it will also offer financial products and services of Azerbaijani companies, he said.

"In addition to facilitating technology transfer, this initiative will improve the logistics ecosystem, add value to different areas, create new job opportunities, encourage e-commerce culture, enable SMEs to sell online, and reduce the informal economy," he said. "Thus, we expect this initiative to increase foreign investment in the country."

In 2021, Trendyol became Türkiye's first "decacorn" – a private company with more than a $10 billion valuation – after receiving new funding.

*Writing by Gokhan