The continued growth of third-generation (3G) mobile broadband services and the proliferation of smart devices are likely to drive Thailand's retail electronic commerce strongly this year.
The Thai E-Commerce Association predicts retail business will grow by at least 30% this year from 119.64 billion baht reported in 2012.
President Pawoot Pongvitayapanu said the business-to-consumer sector is exceptionally robust.
Normally, the industry has posted annual growth of about 20%, except in 2011 when the country was ravaged by floods.
"The presence of 3G has helped to increase first-time e-commerce buyers, particularly upcountry, to experience shopping via mobiles," Mr Pawoot said.
The expansion of e-marketplaces is also a main contributor. The association will hold a Thailand Online Mega Sale 2013 from Nov 26 to Dec 3 involving more than 500 websites offering discounts of up to 80%.
"These e-markets will increase sales for online business in the same way as Cyber Monday in the US," Mr Pawoot said.
The current slowdown in the economy could turn consumers away from conventional shopping if they can buy products online at lower prices.
Mr Pawoot, also managing director of Tarad.com, a leading e-market website under Japan's Rakuten, said transactions via its website alone will grow by nearly 50% this year.
Tarad's top-selling products include fashion items, food and health products and gadgets such as smart devices.
Although e-commerce is convenient, consumers still complain about delivery delays and the quality of goods differing from what was advertised online or in catalogues.
Mr Pawoot vowed to improve Tarad's business significantly next year and to reduce complaints from 2% to 1% of orders.
Delivery will be made within two days of placing orders instead of seven days. Customers who buy from 1,700 verified online merchants or in its premium mall will get a guarantee of product quality.
The improvement is aimed at strengthening Tarad to compete with rivals, especially Lazada, which buys products and sells directly to buyers so that it controls product quality and delivery time.
Tarad is joining Rakuten to launch a credit card with commercial banks next year.
Its premium mall will use the Rakuten brand next year with a plan to increase the number of merchants to more than 3,000 to earn more monthly fees.
E-commerce competition will be tougher next year due to the expansion of Chinese websites such as Taobao, which plans to access Southeast Asian markets such as Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.