By Aimee Chanthadavong
Having already taken on some of the top US e-commerce websites, buy and sell website The Superior Online Community (SOC) Exchange has launched in Australia.
The SOC Exchange CEO Franco Lagudi told RetailBiz the introduction of the site comes after listening to the frustrations of eBay users who found themselves being drowned in fees.
“Everybody is doing the same thing and is earning commission. On eBay, you’ve got insertion fees, final value fees, listing upgrade fees and we found that while you’re just trying to sell something you’ve got all these complicated issues to deal with. So I thought hang on, why not provide something different and make the process simpler,” he said.
“The SOC Exchange is on a totally different platform and charges a flat rate membership fee of $10 a year. It offers people something different because there’s a market of having more than just one player.”
The website offers sellers and advertisers the capacity to list unlimited amounts of listings in categories including jewellery, electronics, furniture, clothing, toys and books.
Members who pay the $10 flat fee also get their own, customisable website, loaded with value added IT features with unique URL, along with the capacity to add several images and even post a blog.
While it is an Australian-owned company, The SOC Exchange was initially launched in the US in 2009.
“Our success in the US was based purely on the platform we used and where we received very strong feedback. We used the US as a trial market because when we launched we wanted to challenge ourselves and if we were going to do that we were going to that against the best. Now, we’re bringing a more refined version to Australia,” Lagudi said.
“I think we’re making a big impact and we’ve come here for the long haul. I think we’re on the cusp of something big.”