At The Crossroads Of Sharing: Has the Consumer Economy Found Its Next Oasis Of Trust?

BusinessToday

15-05-2025

This commentary was contributed by Tey Eng Xin, a financial columnist and co-author of an international academic journal about investor sentiment
From departmental stores in the industrial age to the mobile commerce screens of today, the evolution of retail has never been a battle of products alone but a relentless reshaping of trust anchors in society.
In the past, towering malls, supermarket chains and glossy TV infomercials stood as symbols of credibility. But in the digital bazaar of 2025, a different force is at play. Social media hosts, livestream presenters and micro-influencers are quietly replacing billboards and celebrity endorsements as the new gatekeepers of consumption.
However, the explosion of online commerce and livestreaming in Malaysia is no accident. It is the byproduct of a nation where smartphone penetration reached 140.2% of the population in 2023, and internet penetration surged to 96.8%, one of the highest rates in Southeast Asia
These figures are not merely statistics; they are signposts of a society where the screen has become the first window to the world. Malaysians are not just mobile-first; they are mobile-dominant, with multiple devices per capita, using them as gateways for shopping, entertainment, socialising and increasingly, livestream commerce.
From Transaction to Interaction: The Emotionalisation of Retail
Based on the independent market research (IMR) of Oasis Home Holding Bhd, it paints a telling picture: Malaysia's online retail market is forecasted to surge from RM32.6 billion in 2023 to RM48.5 billion by 2028, driven primarily by mobile-first platforms, livestream shopping, and social recommendation commerce.
Consumers are no longer shopping for products, they are shopping for reassurance, identity and community. The livestream window has morphed into a digital campfire where hosts tell stories, share laughs and forge bonds with viewers, subtly embedding consumption within the rituals of companionship.
This shift is not merely cosmetic. According to the same IMR report, over 68% of Malaysian livestream shoppers cite the host's credibility and relatability as their primary trigger for purchase, not price, not features.
The Inescapable Human Pulse in an AI-First World
In an era obsessed with automation, personalisation algorithms and artificial intelligence (AI)-driven recommendations, some futurists boldly predict the death of human livestream hosts. They claim that hyper-realistic avatars, voice bots and scripted AI can seamlessly replace human engagement.
Yet, this is a profound misunderstanding of the livestream phenomenon. The notion that AI will replace human livestream hosts is not just premature, it is fundamentally flawed.
Livestream commerce thrives precisely because of its imperfections — the off-script jokes, the genuine eye contact, the awkward moments that make viewers feel they are part of an authentic, unscripted interaction. Strip away the humanity, and what remains is a glorified vending machine. Viewers do not tune in for products alone, they tune in for the familiar face, the spontaneous banter, the authentic stories and the sense of shared experience that no algorithm can replicate.
AI can curate, optimise and recommend, but it cannot replicate the serendipity, tension and warmth that occur when two humans connect. In retail, the heartbeat is irreplaceable.
The Underrated Battlefield: Post-Purchase Experience
Beyond the glittering surface of livestreams, a quieter battleground is shaping consumer loyalty: After-sales service.
Many brands neglect this phase in the pursuit of growth, reducing it to a back-office function. Yet data shows that the top consumer complaints in Malaysia's online commerce sector still stem from post-purchase frustrations: poor service, vague policies, and robotic replies.
Here lies a hidden truth: The most powerful marketing often happens after the sale, when a complaint is met with empathy, when a refund is handled with dignity, when a voice at the other end of the call listens, not scripts. Brands that overlook this stage are not just risking bad reviews; they sever the emotional contract they painstakingly built during the purchase journey.
The Emergence of Human-Centric Platforms
Amid this seismic consumer shift, companies like Oasis Home have emerged, less as pure retailers and more as orchestrators of digital communities.
Without making grand proclamations, Oasis Home has quietly woven the codes of sharing economy into its model — not as a business gimmick but as an embrace of ancient human instincts: The joy of recommending, the pride of influencing, the comfort of belonging.
With its omni platform approach of livestream commerce, affiliate-driven community marketing and hybrid online-offline experience centres, the company echoes a broader societal desire to redefine consumption as participation rather than transaction.
This is not just about selling more beauty products or kitchen gadgets, it is about transforming consumers into stakeholders, turning buyers into storytellers and turning commerce into a living, breathing social ecosystem.
At first glance, livestream commerce may appear as a flashy trend. But beneath the surface, it reflects a deeper human craving for connection in an age of isolation. It reclaims the marketplace as a stage for human stories, laughter and rituals, elements that no algorithm can automate.
As we stand at the crossroads of consumer civilisation, the question is no longer whether livestream commerce is here to stay. The question is: Will brands and platforms evolve into enablers of human warmth and social belonging or will they reduce themselves to algorithmic vending machines in a sterile, post-human retail landscape?
Is Oasis Home simply one of the many players in this space? Or is it the early silhouette of a new consumption ecosystem where commerce returns to its primal roots: Trust, storytelling and community? Related