Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that the rules of trade in the world have changed, calling on SMEs to trade on the internet and use technology to its fullest. The TOBB President urged: “Let's use technology to do business, not empty talk.”

The third Turkey Technology Meetings was held yesterday in Balıkesir. TOBB President M. Rifat Hisarcıklıoğlu spoke at the opening in regards to SMEs on the necessity of technology and new rules of trade in the world. Criticizing the use of technology for frivolities, Hisarcıklıoğlu asked, “By a show of hands, how many people are using the internet and smartphones?” To which everyone raised their hands. Hisarcıklıoğlu went on, “By a show of hands, how many people are using the internet to sell or export goods?” To which only a few hands were raised. “Here it is. In internet and smartphone penetration, we are better than most advanced countries. 90% of the population has mobile connectivity. What are we doing with the internet? We are 6^th highest country in Facebook usage. 4^th in Instagram user count. But when it comes to doing business, we much farther behind. In developed countries, 10% of trade is conducted online. In our case, only 2% of the total retail trade is conducted online. Export is much lower. So people are using technology to make money; we are using it in social media to insult each other.”

- It used to be the Silk Road and Spice Road; now it is Internet Route

“There is a new revolution in trade. This is called the e-commerce revolution,” said Hisarcıklıoğlu, emphasizing that 200 years would be lost in if we miss the trade revolution. TOBB President Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that the countries on the trade route used to be rich, “It used to be the Silk Road and Spice Road; now it is Internet Route. So now the way of trade is through every house, every workplace. You can sell the product you produce in a province of Balıkesir to the most remote corner of Australia. The time to complain is over. We need to be at the forefront of the world in this revolution.”

- Fastest growing companies using technology

Hisarcıklıoğlu stated that Turkey announced its fastest growing 100 companies about 2 months ago. He said that the common feature of all of them is the use of technology for business. Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “Look, it’s not just for selling goods. These companies use technology everywhere. Supply, production, sale, product follow-up. If you want to grow, you should use technology.”

- The most striking examples in the world 

Explaining that the way of doing business in the world has changed now, Hisarcıklıoğlu said. It was a rule that you used to do business in the past: Do what your neighbor is doing. In Kayseri, they said do whatever the person driving Mercedes is doing. Now the rule is exactly the opposite: You need to do what nobody else is doing. This is the age of invention. Inventing is a different way of looking at the world. 80% of successful entrepreneurs in the world do not find anything new but do an existing thing better. The best way to differentiate is to use technology. The most familiar example for all of us is Alibaba. What is its job? Retail. It's the oldest profession in the world. But they did it in a completely different way. Now it's the world's largest retail store. They’ve passed Wallmart. Wallmart has 11,700 stores. How many stores does Alibaba have? Zero. There is not a single store. Single-capital technology.”

Also in attendance in addition to Hisarcıklıoğlu were Balıkesir Chamber of Industry Chair İsmail Uğur, Balıkesir Chamber of Commerce Chair Fahri Ermişler, Balıkesir Governor Ersin Yazıcı and Balıkesir Mayor A. Edip Uğur.