In this pandemic economy, stretching a dollar as far as it can go is key. The mission of Wish, a worldwide mobile e-commerce marketplace, is to help people do that by enabling merchants around the world to sell products at prices generated for the value-conscious consumer. More than 500,000 merchants sell around 1.7 million products a day directly to 60 million monthly active users. And they sell everything from household goods to clothing and gadgets. 

Available in more than 60 countries, the Wish app provides an innovative, discovery-based mobile shopping experience that’s highly visual, entertaining and personalized so each user can find things they didn’t even know they needed. Merchants can benefit by selling outside their countries and accessing a range of data and business tools to increase sales. And the reason the mobile shopping mall can provide such an experience for both consumers and merchants is because Wish empowers its team to share thoughts and ideas that can help shape the business.

AfroTech talked to two employees about what it’s like to work at Wish.

AfroTech: What is your role at Wish?

Tonya Coleman: I’m currently a senior workforce planning manager, responsible for the forecasting and staffing of our vendors in our contact center operations. I’ve worked in operations for more than 20 years and enjoy working closely with our customers. 

O’Nysha Thomas: I joined Wish in September 2020 as a senior brand and marketing designer focusing on diversification for Wish Merchant. Currently, I’m a product designer for that division, focusing on onboarding and identity.

AfroTech: What is the most rewarding aspect of your role?

O’Nysha: Seeing things I’ve helped design is always a rewarding experience. It gives me the opportunity to learn and grow with the teams I’m collaborating with.

Tonya: Being able to orchestrate data to produce accurate forecasting and staffing models for our vendors, as well as the relationships between our vendors. Forecast accuracy ensures our vendors are staffing the right number of agents, which then allows Wish to maintain costs within our customer support organization. I enjoy having a role in improving our vendor productivity and efficiency while also aligning with Wish’s business priorities.  

AfroTech: What do you think separates Wish from other e-commerce sites?

O’Nysha: Wish is really unique in that we make products visible that you may not know you want or need until you see it on your feed. It really plays on the 4Ps of marketing — place, price, product and promotion.

Tonya: We offer affordable products that are guaranteed to fit anyone’s needs, which allows us to reach more customers. 

AfroTech: What is something about working at Wish that people would be surprised to learn?

Tonya: Although we’re a global workforce, it feels like you’re working face to face with your teams. Even in the world of remote work, Wish offers tools and virtual resources to always stay connected. 

O’Nysha: Wish is very collaborative. I’ve had the pleasure of working with peers all over the world. I’ve also seen tremendous growth within my skill set and career in such a short amount of time.

AfroTech: What goals does Wish have for Black entrepreneurs to continue to thrive?

Tonya: Wish has set a clear goal to support diversity amongst employees, merchants and customers. The platform serves as an opportunity to directly support Black-owned small business owners.

O’Nysha: A clear goal I’ve seen demonstrated at Wish is to continue to push for diversity — not only internally, but externally within the products that are available to users. 

AfroTech: How is Wish leveraging its innovation in tech to be a resource for businesses?

Tonya: Wish is always innovating new and unique ways to promote the user shopping experience by connecting diverse merchants and audiences in a quickly evolving e-commerce marketplace.

O’Nysha: Wish is constantly developing different products to help businesses and merchants find success, keep inventory for their businesses and reach a diverse audience from all over the world.

This editorial is brought to you in partnership with Wish.