Ninja Van Philippines eyes more riders to meet pandemic demand

MANILA, Philippines — Ninja Van Philippines is looking to expand its headcount to meet surging demand for logistics services from people staying indoors to avoid contracting the coronavirus.

While he did not mention how many people will be recruited, Martin Cu, country head, said the logistics courier would go on hiring to augment the company's current pool of around 7,000 riders.

The logistics courier is "directly benefitting" from a booming e-commerce sector, similar with other industries capitalizing on digital technology, Cu told reporters. "We're seeing better utilization of our fleet and better productivity from our riders but at the same time demand is accelerating in an exciting way," he said.

"Of course, it will allow us to facilitate more hiring and more job opportunites and that's something that we're proud of given the more pessimistic outlook for the country," he added.

Ninja Van opened business in the Philippines in 2016 and since then, the company claims to have expanded its reach to cover 95% of the population. The pandemic means the number of customers is only poised to rise as Filipinos get used to e-commerce, something Cu said the logistics firm can meet. 

"I think the transition to digital commerce is gonna be a systemic behavior," he said.

"I think this is about penetration. Once these businesses understand how to operate e-commerce, there's no reason to go back," he added.

Apart from the Philippines, Ninja Van is also operating in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. — Ian Nicolas Cigaral