2008 was the year Malaysia saw that digital boom in blogshops. I was in college at that time, and almost everyone of my age knew someone who runs a blogshop. It was a big hit because we were able to buy fashionable clothes that are not sold anywhere in the malls.
Fast forward to 2015, almost everyone now is an online shop owner or has some experience in online business. It is no secret that the minimum entry to run an online business is really low, therefore we Malaysians have somewhat tried to earn some side income through online business.
With so many online shops in the market, of course there will be some good ones that stand out and of course, horrible ones sticking around. For online fashion, we have had shopping review sites such as Emmagem, A Shopaholics Den, Shopping Roll, Your Shopping Kaki, Diary of an e-Shopaholic (which most of them have now gone defunct or changed into non-blogshop reviews exclusives) to help us decide which blogshops were worthwhile and those to avoid completely. It was a really addictive pastime of mine, to read through customers' raves and reviews, and not forgetting, all the juiciest REAL-LIFE MALAYSIAN ONLINE FEUDS that's going on! All of these sites were run by college/uni students, thus these sites also died when they started to go through exams and started working life. (clicking all those links and back logs brings back soooooo muchhhhhh memories from yesteryears!)
There was never really a "professional" review site, (Tongue in Chic doesn't count, it doesn't only focuses on Malaysian blogshops and reviews) so when I heard of a Singaporean-based online review site coming to our Malaysian shores, I was SOOOO HAPPYYYY!!!
How ShopVenture Begin
Min Yong, co-founder of ShopVenture, was once a victim of a bad online shopping experience. Few years ago, she saw the perfect bridesmaids dress online and purchased a multiple set of them for more than $600. However, when they arrived, the gowns looked completely different from what was depicted, not to mention that they arrived several weeks late. Naturally, Min was upset and most of all annoyed that such bad businesses existed. To make things worse, the online shop owner brushed off her complaints and refused to give her a refund!
Having encountered such an incident during one of the most important events of her life, Min was determined to warn other brides-to-be about this unethical company. While there were various forums that allowed Min to start threads to share her experience, there was no go-to website that offered consolidated reviews about online stores. This spurred Min to start ShopVenture, an e-commerce review website dedicated to women’s fashion and lifestyle, and to put accountability back into online businesses.
Every online shopping experience is like a venture because you are literally venturing into unfamiliar territories. This was how the name “ShopVenture” came about. Their vision is to enhance e-commerce, and make every shopper’s online purchase experience a great one and minimise their risks and disappointment through independent reviews from other shoppers.