E-Commerce has been around for quite some time, however only recently has it started to explode onto the South African scene. In the last few years, Woolworths, Pick n Pay, ToysRus and numerous other retailers have become available online not to mention the new purely online stores such as Yuppiechef, Takealot and Wantitall.

For companies that are investigating the feasibility of having an online store, whether it is for the consumers or their distribution channel, they will always run into a few familiar barriers to being great. Don’t be fooled into believing that you need to spend huge amounts on technology and the rest will happen. The technology is the easy part of e-Commerce and it is rapidly becoming commoditised.

Digital Planet reckons it started selling electronic goods online about 10 years too early. Now, it believes, is the right time to stop. The Johannesburg company isn’t pulling out of the e-commerce business. Far from it. It’s focusing on developing and managing online retailing businesses on behalf of other companies.