E-commerce in Argentina Strategic Priorities and Investments Analysis¶
Strategic Priorities¶
The strategic priorities of major industry players in the Argentinian e-commerce value chain are largely focused on enhancing their core platforms, expanding their service offerings, improving logistics capabilities, and strengthening their market position in a competitive and growing environment.
Mercado Libre, as the dominant player, prioritizes the continuous investment in its integrated ecosystem. This includes enhancing its marketplace technology, expanding and refining its fintech arm, Mercado Pago, and significantly investing in its logistics network, Mercado Envios. A key strategic goal is also to increase its seller base and improve the overall user experience for both buyers and sellers, reinforcing its network effects and market leadership across Latin America, with Argentina being a core market.
Traditional retailers with a strong physical presence, such as Fravega, Musimundo, Coto Digital, and Carrefour Argentina, prioritize the successful transition and expansion of their digital channels to complement their brick-and-mortar operations. Their strategic focus is on developing robust e-commerce platforms, offering nationwide delivery, and integrating online sales with in-store services like pickup, embracing an omnichannel strategy to leverage their existing brand recognition and infrastructure. Coto Digital and Carrefour Argentina specifically emphasize expanding their online grocery and mass consumption offerings and improving delivery convenience and coverage.
Tienda Mia, specializing in cross-border e-commerce, focuses strategically on simplifying the process for Argentinian consumers to purchase from international retailers. Their priority is to handle the complexities of international logistics, payments, and customs efficiently, making global products accessible and tapping into demand not met by local offerings.
Platform providers like Tiendanube strategically aim to empower small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) and individual brands to establish and manage their own online stores. Their priority is offering accessible and customizable SaaS e-commerce solutions with integrated tools for payments, shipping, and marketing, thereby growing the overall digital commerce ecosystem by enabling a long tail of sellers. Similarly, Mercado Shops (by Mercado Libre) and VTEX also focus on providing platforms for businesses to create their own online stores.
In the payment processing segment, Mercado Pago's strategic priority is to maintain and expand its dominance as a digital wallet and payment processor, not only within the Mercado Libre platform but also across a wide range of external online and offline businesses in Argentina. This involves continuous development of its technology, security features, and expanding its user base and acceptance points.
In logistics, Mercado Envios focuses on building and optimizing a sophisticated logistics network to provide efficient fulfillment and delivery services for sellers, enhancing speed and reliability, including options like same-day or next-day delivery in key areas. Other logistics players like Correo Argentino aim to leverage their existing national network to serve the e-commerce sector. The joint venture TASA Logística / DPD Argentina highlights a strategic priority on strengthening specialized last-mile delivery solutions to meet the increasing demands of e-commerce.
Players facing restructuring, such as Garbarino and Ribeiro, likely have strategic priorities centered on stabilizing their operations, managing debt, and attempting to maintain a functional online presence as part of their survival or turnaround efforts.
Overall, the strategic priorities reflect a market driven by growth, competition, and the need to overcome operational challenges, particularly in logistics and payments. Key themes include ecosystem building (Mercado Libre), omnichannel integration (traditional retailers), enabling smaller sellers (platform providers), specializing in niches (Tienda Mia, Editorial Atlántida), and strengthening crucial infrastructure (Mercado Pago, Mercado Envios, TASA Logística/DPD Argentina).
Recent and Planned Investments¶
Based on the provided information, recent and planned investments in the Argentinian e-commerce value chain are primarily directed towards enhancing logistics infrastructure, developing technology platforms, and expanding fintech services. While specific financial figures for all players' investments in 2024-2025 are not consistently detailed in the snippets, the activities and strategic priorities outlined strongly indicate investment flows in key areas.
| Player Name | Area of Investment | Description of Investment (Recent/Planned) | Alignment with Strategic Priority |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mercado Libre | Logistics Infrastructure (Mercado Envios) | Continuous investment in warehousing, fulfillment centers, and delivery network expansion and optimization. | Strengthening the integrated ecosystem and improving delivery speed and reliability. |
| Mercado Libre | Technology | Ongoing investment in platform development, user experience, and data analytics. | Enhancing the core marketplace and services. |
| Mercado Libre | Fintech Services (Mercado Pago) | Investment in technology, security, and network expansion to increase adoption for online and offline payments. | Dominance in digital payment processing and fintech. |
| Fravega | Digital Channel / E-commerce Platform | Heavy investment in developing and enhancing its e-commerce platform and integrating it with physical stores. | Successful transition to omnichannel retail and strengthening online presence. |
| Musimundo | Online Store | Investment in maintaining and potentially improving its e-commerce platform to compete in the digital market. | Adapting to the digital market and growing the e-commerce channel. |
| Coto Digital (Coto) | Online Grocery Platform | Heavy investment in its online platform, delivery services, and expanding coverage areas. | Digital transformation in the supermarket sector and expanding online reach. |
| Carrefour Argentina | Online Store / Omnichannel Integration | Investment in its e-commerce platform and integrating online sales with physical stores and various delivery/pickup options. | Alignment with global omnichannel retail strategy and expanding online offerings. |
| Walmart (ChangoMâs) | E-commerce Component | Continued operation and likely investment in maintaining and growing the online sales channel. | Continuity and growth in online retail under new local ownership. |
| Tiendanube | E-commerce Platform (SaaS) | Investment in platform development, features, integrations (payments, shipping), and support for businesses. | Enabling SMEs and brands to establish their own e-commerce presence. |
| TASA Logística / Geopost | Last-Mile Delivery (DPD Argentina Joint Venture) | Creation of a joint venture specifically aimed at strengthening and professionalizing last-mile delivery solutions for e-commerce. | Addressing logistics bottlenecks and providing specialized delivery services. |
| Payment Gateways/Processors | Technology and Infrastructure | Ongoing investment in secure transaction processing technology, fraud prevention systems, and network expansion. | Ensuring secure and efficient handling of financial transactions. |
| Logistics Providers (3PLs) | Warehousing, Fleet, Technology | Investment in expanding warehouse capacity, modernizing fleets, and implementing technology for tracking and route optimization. | Improving efficiency, speed, and coverage of e-commerce fulfillment and delivery. |
The significant overall market growth in billing (181% in 2024, 284% in H1 2025) and transaction volumes (246 million orders, 504 million units in 2024) implicitly points to substantial, albeit not always specifically detailed per player, investment across the value chain to support this expansion. The projected growth in the Latin America e-commerce logistics market also underscores the ongoing investment in this critical area.
References¶
Mercado Libre Argentina. https://www.mercadolibre.com.ar/ Todo sobre el e-commerce en Argentina y su potencial de crecimiento - Tienda Nube. https://www.tiendanube.com/blog/ecommerce-argentina/ Estadísticas e Información sobre Mercado Libre en 2024. https://marketing4ecommerce.net/estadisticas-informacion-mercado-libre/ E-commerce en la Argentina: diez años de crecimiento consecutivo y récord de facturación. https://www.infobae.com/tendencias/2025/02/21/e-commerce-en-la-argentina-diez-anos-de-crecimiento-consecutivo-y-record-de-facturacion/ Mercado Libre: 25 años liderando el comercio electrónico en América Latina - Infobae. https://www.infobae.com/espacio-n/2024/04/29/mercado-libre-25-anos-liderando-el-comercio-electronico-en-america-latina/ Tienda Mia Argentina. https://tiendamia.com/ar Fravega | Venta de Aires Acondicionados, Lavarropas, Heladeras y más. https://www.fravega.com/ Musimundo - Comprá tecnología, electrodomésticos, TV, audio y más. https://www.musimundo.com/ Coto Digital - Compras online en el supermercado. https://www.cotodigital3.com.ar/ Carrefour Argentina - Supermercado Online. https://www.carrefour.com.ar/ ChangoMâs (formerly Walmart Argentina). https://www.walmart.com.ar/ Garbarino - Tienda Online. https://www.garbarino.com/ Ribeiro - Tienda Online. https://www.ribeiro.com.ar/ Las 18 mejores plataformas de venta online en Argentina - Tienda Nube. https://www.tiendanube.com/blog/mejores-plataformas-ecommerce-argentina/ CACE | Estadísticas - Cámara Argentina de Comercio Electrónico. https://www.cace.org.ar/estadisticas Hot Sale 2025: Anticipan un incremento de más de 180% en la facturación - Los Andes. https://www.losandes.com.ar/economia/hot-sale-2025-anticipan-un-incremento-de-mas-de-180-en-la-facturacion/ Latin America E-commerce Logistics Market Size & Share Analysis - Mordor Intelligence. https://www.mordorintelligence.com/industry-reports/latin-america-e-commerce-logistics-market Geopost and Tasa Logística announce the creation of DPD Argentina. https://www.geopost.com/en/press-release/geopost-and-tasa-logistica-announce-creation-dpd-argentina/ Récord del e-commerce: creció 181% en 2024 y superó la inflación - OPI Santa Cruz. https://www.opisantacruz.com.ar/2025/02/11/record-del-e-commerce-crecio-181-en-2024-y-supero-la-inflacion/ VTEX sigue potenciando el ecommerce en Argentina - Inversor Latam. https://www.inversorlatam.com/2019/03/22/vtex-sigue-potenciando-el-ecommerce-en-argentina/ Crecen las compras online en Argentina en el primer semestre de 2024. https://ilatinam.com/compras-online-argentina-primer-semestre-2024/