Buy on the Web, Pay at the Mall - Dutch supermarket firm Royal Ahold's Internet strategy - Company Business and Marketing

Industry Standard, The, Dec, 2000 by Daniel Helft

Leaving home to pay for an online purchase would be an insufferable bother to U.S. consumers. But Argentine mega-retailer Altocity.com is using the payment option to lure consumers to its site. The ability to settle Web bills at local shopping malls has been a big draw in Buenos Aires, where few people have credit cards -- and the ones who do are afraid to use them online.

Most of the region's leading e-tailers offer alternatives for customers who don't want to use credit cards online. Dutch supermarket firm Royal Ahold, which owns Argentine grocery chain Disco, earned a loyal online following by allowing customers to pay in person while the goods are delivered at their doorsteps. Leading computer manufacturer Compaq also offers payment-on-delivery services, as do a slew of other e-commerce sites.

Online businesses agree there has to be an easier way. Regional Internet firms are developing their own credit systems and working with banks to promote card use and tackle fears about online fraud.

But if credit cards take a while to gain momentum, that's all right with the investors backing Altocity.com. After all, when Net shoppers head to the mall to pay for their purchases, local merchants get a chance to tempt them into further buys. That's good news for IRSA, which owns half of Altocity -- and 90 percent of the shopping centers in Buenos Aires.