The share of information technology (IT) in the e-commerce market is steadily expanding. IT is emerging as core competitiveness that goes beyond simply displaying products online and determines the quality of customer experience and sales.

In the global e-commerce market, it has become standard to analyse customers' past purchase histories with big data to recommend personalised products, or to use augmented reality (AR) so consumers can virtually experience products online. But small merchants and early-stage founders, who lack capital and specialised staff, are struggling to adopt such technologies because of the enormous cost of building systems.

◆AI and big data, once the preserve of large malls, now go mainstream

Cafe24 explains that a practical alternative to narrowing this technology gap is to use an open e-commerce ecosystem. Cafe24 is reducing the gap through its e-commerce app marketplace, Cafe24 Store.

Cafe24 Store is an app marketplace that lets online merchants apply the latest e-commerce functions to their own shopping malls with just a few clicks. Even operators without development knowledge or staff can introduce advanced functions such as AI-based product recommendations, customer relationship management (CRM) and marketing automation without much difficulty.

According to Cafe24, as of the end of last year, the number of development companies and developers listed on Cafe24 Store exceeded 22,000, and cumulative app downloads surpassed 1.31 million. Total transaction value last year rose 64 percent from a year earlier to 75.4 billion won. It is assessed that a large-scale ecosystem has formed as many developers and shopping mall operators combine, creating an environment in which small shopping malls can use IT infrastructure on the level of large companies.

The spread of AI technology is behind Cafe24 Store's growth. An environment has been created in which advanced functions can be developed quickly using AI tools and supplied to e-commerce operators. This has led to a sharp rise in partner developers newly entering the market. About 20 percent of all apps on Cafe24 Store apply AI technology. In addition to core solutions that had previously been strong in marketing, logistics, payments and inventory management, a large number of apps have been launched across fields including AI, data analysis and CRM.

This has enabled small and mid-sized shopping malls to easily use precise targeting and data analysis technologies. If a merchant installs a product recommendation app based on big data and machine learning, it can analyse visitors' real-time behavioural data and automatically display products with a high conversion rate. If an operator links an app that provides 3D modelling or AR functions, it is also possible to implement a virtual fitting (Virtual Try-on) service that overcomes the physical limits of online commerce. Even operators without programming knowledge can use the latest IT technologies at low cost in subscription form with only a few clicks to complete the integration process.

◆A partner co-growth ecosystem..."IT is an era of 'use,' not 'development'"

Developers providing functions in the store ecosystem are also growing rapidly. Salad Lab, which provides app services such as Alpha Review, achieved sharp growth after joining Cafe24 Store after it was founded by 2 developers. As of August last year, the number of paying client companies using Alpha Review surpassed 3,000 in 4 years, and Salad Lab's workforce has grown to 80.

Salad Lab CEO Dong-hoon Shin (신동훈) said, "Through Cafe24 Store, we were able to meet a wide range of online business operators as customers, which allowed us to effectively grow the business." He added, "We plan to steadily launch and advance services that online operators can use usefully, including not only reviews but also product recommendations, promotions and customer relationship management."

Linkdy, a service by Rafdy Co Ltd, has also been growing since it first launched on Cafe24 Store in 2023. As of February, it had 5,000 participating influencers and achieved cumulative transaction value of 6 billion won. Linkdy is a platform that supports the entire process of affiliate marketing, including influencer recruitment, sales tracking and cash settlement, so online operators can collaborate with many micro-influencers.

Rafdy CEO Se-yong Oh (오세용) said, "Through Cafe24 Store, it has become an environment where anyone can easily introduce advanced functions that only large brands could enjoy in the past and grow their business." He added, "Recently, a wide range of online operators across industries are actively adopting affiliate marketing. We plan to continue to advance accumulated data and AI technologies and focus on creating a virtuous cycle in which online operators meet optimal partner collaborators and it leads to actual sales growth."

The way e-commerce businesses are operated is now shifting from building and developing to using. The industry's new view is that it is no longer an efficient strategy for early-stage founders to invest substantial capital and time to plan and develop independent systems.

A trend is emerging that what online operators need is the 'ability to use platforms' by finding solutions suited to their brands and applying them to their shopping malls. In this era, the development and maintenance of advanced IT technologies are delegated to specialised ecosystems such as Cafe24 Store, and founders can focus their capabilities on the essence of the business: 'enhancing brand value' and 'product planning'.