ThailandPostMart Marks 8th Year: Analysing Thai Post E-Commerce
An in-depth look at ThailandPostMart as Thailand Post's e-commerce platform enters its 8th year amid a market dominated by foreign giants.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
- ThailandPostMart was founded in 2018 to support OTOP vendors and local community products.
- The platform currently hosts around 800 shops and roughly 5,000 product items.
- Accumulated sales stand at approximately 700 million baht, largely driven by government projects.
- Thailand Post operates over 50,000 service points nationwide, serving as an unmatched logistical asset.
Behind the convenience enjoyed by Thai online shoppers lies logistics networks like SPX Express, built by Shopee since 2018 to cover every area. However, when measuring pure network reach on the ground, foreign players are still trailing behind a domestic giant.
Thailand Post commands a network of over 50,000 service points, reaching 29 million households nationwide through traditional post offices and EMS Point locations in department stores and convenience stores. This infrastructure represents an asset that no amount of massive foreign spending can replicate overnight.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
Yet in the digital sphere, ThailandPostMart, Thailand Post's E-Marketplace established in 2018, has recorded accumulated sales of around 700 million baht, compared to 500 million baht achieved during its 2017 trial phase. With Thailand's e-commerce market surpassing 1 trillion baht in 2025 and heading toward 1.1 to 1.2 trillion baht, questions arise over why a platform with such strong physical assets has grown at a measured pace.
ThailandPostMart was born from the mission to help OTOP sellers, farmers, and community merchants sell online 24/7 with 1-2 day delivery, extending internationally to the US, China, and Japan. While initial targets aimed for 5,000 community shops and 12,000 listings, the platform currently maintains about 800 shops and roughly 5,000 items.
For sellers, the platform emphasizes accessibility with free registration within three steps via its app. In August 2021, free registration drew over 6,500 operators and 17,000 items. Compared to 2026 figures of 800 shops and 5,000 items, the number of active operators dropped by over 87% and products by over 70% over five years, highlighting retention challenges.
The significant decline in active sellers may reflect a strategic shift by the platform to filter for quality vendors, or it may indicate that many merchants struggled to maintain profitable operations. For a state-backed platform competing against heavily funded foreign giants, survival requires more than free onboarding; it demands an ecosystem that consistently drives sustainable sales.
Nevertheless, the government maintains active support. In July 2026, senior executives from the Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (DES) held direct meetings with Thailand Post to upgrade the platform. Furthermore, the 700 million baht sales milestone was largely driven by the government's "Thai Help Thai" SME project, a collaboration between the Ministry of Commerce, ThailandPostMart, and Nex Gen Commerce, which waived GP fees, reduced shipping to 20 baht per order, and distributed 500,000 discount codes worth 50 million baht, boosting web traffic tenfold in June 2026.
Regarding market competition, data from 2025 shows that three major foreign platforms—Shopee, TikTok Shop, and Lazada—captured a combined 98.8% share of ASEAN's e-commerce GMV. Meanwhile, Thai SMEs face pressure from cheap imported goods and foreign platform fees ranging from 22% to 40%. A survey of over 500 SMEs in Q1-Q2 2026 revealed that average net profit for sellers plummeted to just 2.3% after all fees.
"The Thai e-Commerce Association has scheduled talks with ThailandPostMart, Thaimart, Pantip Mall, and ShopChill to discuss cooperation and propose a working group."
Pawoot Pongvitayapanu, Thai e-commerce pioneer
These mounting pressures have spurred Thai operators to formally band together. Sparked by a social media post from Thai e-commerce pioneer Pawoot Pongvitayapanu, the Thai e-Commerce Association initiated discussions with ThailandPostMart, Thaimart, Pantip Mall, and ShopChill to explore collaborative strategies for domestic platforms.
Source: Techsauce
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