(MENAFN) İstanbul is set to host Türkiye E-Commerce Week starting Friday, uniting industry leaders, investors, academics, and policymakers under the theme “Future-Commerce.”

The two-day event is organized by the Trade Ministry, the Electronic Commerce Operators Association (ETID), and the Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges (TOBB), with Anadolu serving as the global communication partner.

Attendees can expect a packed agenda including panels, masterclasses, workshops, exhibitions, experience zones, S2B (startup-to-business) meetings, and networking sessions, all designed to shape Türkiye’s digital commerce strategy. Highlights will feature success stories from domestic and international markets, entrepreneurial innovations, AI-driven opportunities, and the effects of digital transformation.

Cagatay Yasin Karaboga, head of the Trade Ministry’s Electronic Commerce Department, announced a concurrent e-commerce festival during a Wednesday briefing.

“For the first time, Türkiye will have a shopping week that doesn’t originate from abroad,” he said. “This week will no longer be called ‘Black Friday.’ November will now be known as the ‘Türkiye Shopping Festival,’ with strong discounts.”

Karaboga emphasized that technological advances are reshaping both consumer and producer behavior.

“Consumers can now shop without time or location limits, and producers can easily sell to other cities and abroad thanks to the equal opportunities provided by e-commerce,” he noted. "Rapidly changing commercial conditions also require market regulation."

According to Karaboga, one in every five transactions in Türkiye is now conducted online.

The ministry’s newly released “E-commerce Outlook Report in Türkiye”, which uses data from the Electronic Commerce Information System, tracks regional activity levels through an e-commerce compliance index.

“With the e-commerce compliance index in our report, we measured activity levels across provinces and designed a strengthening project for those with lower density,” Karaboga said. “We will begin work in 30 provinces in December.”

He added that November, now designated as Türkiye’s e-commerce festival month, is intended to raise sector awareness, enhance SME capabilities, attract new market participants, and spotlight emerging trends like AI and sustainable digital commerce.

Türkiye’s e-commerce market reached $90 billion in 2024, with 5.9 billion transactions recorded.

“E-commerce now accounts for 19.1% of all trade,” Karaboga said. “In other words, one in every five commercial transactions is online.”

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