My younger sister graduated with a BBA and set her sights specifically on e-commerce — she’d been running a small Instagram store on the side during university and figured that experience would carry her straight into a proper e-commerce role. Her first few applications went nowhere, and it genuinely puzzled her, since she actually had relevant hands-on experience, unlike a lot of fresh graduate applicants.
Turned out the gap wasn’t her experience — it was how she was positioning it, and which specific roles she was targeting. Once she adjusted her approach, she landed an E-Commerce Executive role at a growing Lahore-based online brand within about six weeks. I helped her through a good chunk of that process, and here’s the real breakdown of how e-commerce hiring actually works in Pakistan right now.
First, Understand the Two Very Different “E-commerce” Worlds
This tripped my sister up early on. “E-commerce job” isn’t one thing — it splits clearly into two very different employer types, and the work looks completely different in each.
Working for a marketplace itself (Daraz, and similar platforms) — Daraz Pakistan, owned by Alibaba Group, is by far the biggest employer here, hiring across logistics, marketing, tech, category management, and business functions. These roles are more corporate, structured, often requiring specific functional skills (finance, supply chain, digital marketing, tech).
Working for a brand/seller that sells ON marketplaces — smaller businesses and growing brands that sell through Daraz, Shopify, or Amazon, hiring people to actually run their store operations — product listings, order management, customer chat support, ad campaigns. This is where most fresh-graduate-friendly, faster-to-land roles actually sit.
My sister’s early mistake was applying almost exclusively to Daraz’s own corporate listings, which tend to want more specific experience even at entry level. Her actual break came from the second category — a smaller brand managing its own Shopify and Daraz stores, much more open to fresh graduates who could show genuine hands-on comfort with these platforms.
What Roles Actually Open Up for Freshers
From what’s genuinely active and realistic right now:
E-Commerce Specialist/Executive — Managing product listings, pricing, running the store day-to-day across Daraz, Shopify, or similar. This was my sister’s actual role — a great generalist entry point.
E-Commerce Intern (often converting to full-time) — Several listings explicitly offer paid internships specifically structured to convert into a full-time job offer after successful completion — a genuinely good, lower-risk entry path if you’re brand new to the field.
Customer Chat Support / Customer Support Representative — Handling customer queries for online stores. Less specialized, easier entry point, decent way to understand the customer side of e-commerce before moving into operations.
Product Researcher — Conducting market and competitor research, sourcing suppliers through platforms like Alibaba or AliExpress, tracking pricing trends. A good fit if you’re more analytically inclined.
Order Administrator / Supply Chain-adjacent roles — More operations and logistics focused, especially relevant if you’ve got a supply chain or business background.
Daraz’s own corporate trainee programs — Daraz runs its own Shared Services functions (Finance, ACCA Trainee tracks, tech roles) that hire fresh graduates directly into more structured corporate tracks, though these tend to be more competitive and specific about qualifications.
Step-by-Step: What Actually Worked for My Sister
Step 1: She built a small, real portfolio showing actual platform familiarity.
This mattered more than her degree, honestly. She documented her own small Instagram store’s basic metrics, screenshots of product listings she’d optimized, and a simple explanation of how she’d handled customer messages and orders. It wasn’t corporate-polished, but it was real, demonstrable experience with the actual mechanics of online selling.
Step 2: She specifically searched for listings mentioning Shopify, Daraz Seller Center, or Amazon Seller Central by name.
Generic “marketing” or “sales” searches buried relevant e-commerce roles. Searching platform names directly on Rozee.pk and Indeed Pakistan surfaced much more targeted, relevant listings.
Step 3: She applied to smaller growing brands, not just big names.
Smaller e-commerce brands managing their own Daraz and Shopify presence hire faster and are often genuinely more willing to train a motivated fresher than a large, more bureaucratic listing at a bigger company would be.
Step 4: She prepared to talk specifically about product listing optimization and basic SEO.
Her interview included direct questions about how she’d write a product title and description to rank better in Daraz search — genuinely practical, hands-on knowledge, not abstract marketing theory. Knowing basic e-commerce SEO concepts (keyword-rich titles, clear category tagging) gave her a real edge here.
Step 5: She clarified the actual platforms and daily tasks before accepting.
Some listings are broad (“E-Commerce Executive”) but the actual daily work varies a lot — some roles are heavy on customer chat support, others are almost entirely product listing and inventory management, others lean into running paid ad campaigns (Facebook/Instagram ads tied to the store). Asking directly what a typical day looks like avoided a mismatch between expectation and reality.
A Real Example Worth Sharing
My sister’s actual role: E-Commerce Executive at a small but growing Lahore-based fashion brand, managing their Shopify store and Daraz seller account. Day-to-day: updating product listings, coordinating with the courier for order fulfillment, responding to customer chat queries, and occasionally helping set up basic Facebook ad campaigns. Starting salary was around PKR 45,000/month — modest, but she was learning genuinely transferable digital commerce skills fast, on real platforms, with real customer interactions.
Compare that to a friend of hers who took a more generic “E-Commerce Manager” title at a company that turned out to be a two-person setup with no real structure or defined process — constant confusion about responsibilities and inconsistent pay dates. Same industry, same fresh-graduate stage, very different experience — which again comes back to actually vetting the specific company, not just the job title.
What to Realistically Expect Salary-Wise
Entry-level e-commerce executive/specialist roles at smaller brands typically start around PKR 35,000–55,000/month. Daraz’s own corporate entry-level and trainee roles, along with larger established online retailers, can start somewhat higher, especially for specialized functions like finance or tech. As you build a track record — particularly demonstrated ability to grow sales or improve conversion on a specific platform — pay climbs meaningfully, and e-commerce is genuinely one of the faster-growing sectors in Pakistan right now, so opportunities for growth within a couple of years are realistic.
Common Mistakes Fresh Graduates Make
Only applying to Daraz’s own corporate listings and ignoring smaller sellers. As shown above, smaller brands running their own Daraz/Shopify stores are often a faster, more realistic entry point for total freshers.
Not demonstrating any hands-on platform familiarity. Even a small personal project — an Instagram shop, a friend’s small business you helped list products for — is worth including and discussing specifically in interviews.
Treating it as a purely “marketing” role without understanding operations. E-commerce roles often blend marketing, basic logistics awareness, and customer service — being narrowly focused on just one aspect undersells your fit.
Not asking about the actual platforms and daily tasks before accepting. As covered above, job titles in this space vary a lot in actual day-to-day content — always clarify before committing.
Ignoring smaller companies’ legitimacy checks. Since a lot of e-commerce hiring happens at small, newer companies, it’s worth doing the same basic checks as any private-sector job — real online presence, actual products being sold, verifiable reviews — before accepting an offer.
Final Thoughts
E-commerce is genuinely one of Pakistan’s fastest-growing sectors for fresh graduates right now, and it doesn’t require a specialized degree — practical platform familiarity and a demonstrated understanding of how online selling actually works often matter more than your specific major. Smaller brands running their own Daraz and Shopify stores are frequently the fastest, most realistic entry point, even if Daraz’s own corporate listings feel like the more obvious target at first glance.
My sister’s advice to her juniors now: “Sirf degree mat dikhao, kuch actual kaam dikhao — chahe chhota sa project hi kyun na ho.” Don’t just show your degree — show some actual work, even if it’s small. That’s genuinely what got her noticed.
Platforms worth checking for real listings:
- Rozee.pk: https://www.rozee.pk
- Indeed Pakistan: https://pk.indeed.com
- Daraz Pakistan Careers: https://www.daraz.pk/careers