HÀ NỘI — Online Friday 2017, the largest annual event for the e-commerce business and consumer communities in Việt Nam, kicked off on Thursday evening in HCM City.

The event will go on for 24 hours via the official website www.onlinefriday.vn, from 0:00 to 24:00, on the first Friday of December, giving consumers the opportunity to buy quality products at special discounts.

Online Friday 2017 will attract the participation of manufacturers, goods and services suppliers, delivery enterprises and banks and organisations providing payment services, helping participating businesses strengthen their connection with partners and promote the development of the professional e-commerce supply chain.

Well-known businesses will participate, including Adayroi, Lazada, Shopee and Nagakawa, as well as Sunhouse, Anbico, Sendo and Leflair.

Customers can easily shop and interact with businesses through online and offline activities, and avail of many available surprise promotional offers. This year, the organisers will publish the products’ information, including producers’ listed price, current selling price in the market and promotional price during the Online Friday sale. The promotional programmes will ensure genuine products, price reduction and free shipping for customers.

The BigOFF event will also be held at Lê Văn Tám Park, HCM City, from December 1 to 3, with the participation of more than 100 booths from the top enterprises of Việt Nam.

The event is organised by the Việt Nam E-commerce and Information Technology Agency (Vecita) under the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

Online Friday, approved by the government, is an annual event being held since 2014.

Last year, the total sales of 30 large companies at Online Friday 2016, held on December 2, reached VNĐ664 billion (US$28 million), tripling the sales of the previous year. — VNS