Souq is the largest e-commerce platform in the UAE. Many sellers want to open an account on Souq to sell goods. Here is a comprehensive guide to enter the largest e-commerce platform in the UAE, so that you can understand the account opening process and fee structure, and help you smoothly enter this market with huge potential.
1. Souq account opening method
In terms of account opening, there are currently three common ways to register a Souq seller account:
a. Self-registration
Self-registration is a way to register as a seller account through the Souq website. However, this requires you to provide a scanned copy of the UAE business license, a UAE bank account (can be a company account or a legal person’s personal account), a contact email and a local mobile phone number. For Chinese sellers, there may be certain difficulties and high costs.
b. Agent account opening
Souq officially authorized a number of account opening agents, mainly agents of FBS (Fulfillment by Souq) logistics carriers. Agents use their own UAE business licenses and bank accounts to open Souq accounts, and then provide sub-accounts to Chinese sellers. Agents need to pay a certain fee to open an account. The amount of the fee varies from company to company, usually ranging from several thousand to tens of thousands. Although using an agent to open an account has disadvantages such as logistics bundling, non-permanent account and possible collection fee of 1% to 3%, it is still a viable option for some sellers.
c. Amazon Merchants Opening Stores
Amazon launched the Middle East Station in 2019 and recruited merchants. However, the scale of this recruitment is relatively small, limited to sellers who are invited to register, and there are certain requirements and restrictions on sellers.
In addition, Hui Net is currently the only official docking party that can use the seller’s own information (Chinese business license and legal person information) to apply for a Souq account. Hui Net can help you open accounts in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. The processing time is about one week. You can use FBS to ship goods without paying collection fees and collect payments by yourself.
2. Souq Fee Structure
Opening a store on the Souq platform is free, and there is no need to pay a deposit or monthly fee. However, sellers need to consider the following fees when selling goods:
a. Order service fee
An order service fee of 7.5 UAE dirhams will be charged for each order, but this fee is waived for orders below 50 UAE dirhams.
b. Commission
A commission is charged based on the sales price of the goods. The commission rate is generally between 5% and 20%, and depends on the category of the goods.
Make sure to take these fees into account when pricing to maintain your sales profit.
Summary
The above is the account opening process and fee structure of Souq. If sellers encounter any problems, they can contact Souq customer service through the seller backend, which is similar to Amazon. In addition, Huiwang also provides one-stop training for Souq sellers every month, including training on store entry, product selection, listing, delivery, collection and customer service, to help you succeed on the Souq platform. As you gradually understand the continuous development of the market and the platform, you will be able to seize opportunities, achieve sales growth, and expand the potential of the UAE market.