What would typically be considered to be a shopping platform has been converted into an enhanced experience.
A team of nine Zynga developers have worked with flurry and Adap.tv to create a tremendous m-commerce idea that has developed into what is called Boxed, an app that allows for the purchase of bulk goods.
To do this, they inexpensively purchased the boxed.com domain from a man in the UK who owned it for 15 years.
The original concept that the created was to draw carry over the $25 billion market for club shopping over to the m-commerce channel. This presented a considerable amount of potential, as there are many consumers who would be interested in this type of shopping but who do not have access to it for various reasons, such as people living in urban cores or remote areas, children, or college students.
Boxed has now opened its next-day and two-day delivery service and m-commerce is soon to follow.
The online next-day and two-day delivery service has just been launched in parts of the Midwest, as well as in the Northeastern part of the country. However, in around three weeks, there will also be a West Coast warehouse opening and the release of an Android m-commerce app.
Though there has been a great deal of excitement built around this new m-commerce application, what most people are wondering is whether or not the price advantage will be maintained, particularly when shipping costs are taken into account.
The concept of selling online in bulk, whether over e- or m-commerce, is a rather unique one, as many companies have shied away from the concept. Certain items are too cheap to make it worthwhile, while others are too heavy to make proper sense to try to ship them. Amazon has decided against it altogether because they don’t wish to cut their margins, and companies that are already selling in bulk – such as Costco, BJ’s and Sam’s Club – have not made much of an investment into online sales and nearly nothing toward mobile. The test will be whether or not this new digital store model can hold up against high potential costs.
