Toro launches as Solomon Islands’ first integrated e-commerce platform with mobile money, services, digital goods, and PUDO hubs
Toro, which was officially launched on November 28, 2025, has been introduced as Solomon Islands’ response to fragmented digital commerce. The platform offers a comprehensive online marketplace where individuals and businesses can sell physical products, professional services, and digital content through their own storefronts. Toro is the first e-commerce marketplace in the country to integrate mobile money payment options.
The female-led startup launched with more than 100 registered users and a new affiliate marketing program led by brand ambassador Salote Ziru, enabling content creators to earn commissions by promoting vendors’ products and services.
“We’re launching Solomon Islands’ own version of Amazon and Upwork on one platform,” said Angellina Fakaia, Toro’s Founder and CEO. “But we’ve built it specifically for our context, integrated with mobile money payment, designed for assisted commerce through pickup stations, and structured to work in low-bandwidth environments.”
Prior to Toro’s launch, e-commerce in Solomon Islands had remained largely informal and dispersed across social media platforms, with services concentrated mainly in urban centers. With 73.3 percent of the population living in rural areas, challenges such as limited regulatory frameworks, underdeveloped ICT infrastructure, high logistics costs, and low mobile payment adoption have continued to restrict nationwide participation in digital commerce.
Toro aims to address these barriers through a unified marketplace, integrated payment systems, and flexible logistics partnerships.
The platform operates across three main categories: physical goods, professional services, and digital products. Vendors can establish online storefronts to sell items ranging from fresh produce and handmade crafts to repair services, consultations, and educational content.
The digital products category represents a significant milestone for local creators. Musicians, artists, educators, and graphic designers can now monetize their work through streaming, downloads, and digital sales—opening new formal income opportunities not previously available in Solomon Islands.
Toro’s affiliate marketing program allows content creators to earn commissions by promoting vendors’ offerings on social media. Brand ambassador Salote Ziru is leading this initiative, leveraging local trust and community influence.
“Content creators already have established trust in their communities,” Fakaia said. “By partnering with them as affiliates, we’re creating new income streams while helping vendors reach customers through authentic voices.”
Toro is the first e-commerce marketplace in Solomon Islands to integrate mobile money payments. The platform also supports cash on delivery and bank transfers, with credit and debit card payment options scheduled for release next week.
To improve accessibility, Toro operates three Pick Up/Drop Off (PUDO) stations at Smart Technology branches in Tandai, Point Cruz, and AJ Mall. These stations act as community hubs where customers can browse products with assistance, place orders, process payments, and deliver or collect packages.
The platform offers four delivery methods:
- Door-to-door delivery
- Seller drop-off
- Buyer pick-up
- PUDO stations
“The PUDO stations and flexible delivery options solve multiple problems simultaneously,” Fakaia noted. “They provide payment infrastructure for the unbanked, create physical touchpoints for people who need assistance, and give both sellers and buyers convenient options that fit their circumstances.”
Toro directly supports priorities outlined in the Solomon Islands National E-commerce Strategy (2022–2027), which identifies logistics, electronic payments, and rural–urban integration as key challenges. It also aligns with the Pacific E-commerce Strategy and Roadmap (2021–2025), positioning the platform as a potential model for replication across other Pacific nations.
Despite progress in mobile and internet access—547,000 mobile connections representing 66 percent of the population and 42.5 percent internet penetration—many Solomon Islanders have remained excluded from structured digital commerce due to fragmented services and limited delivery infrastructure.
Toro’s platform launched to the public on November 28, with vendor onboarding and customer registration now open. A mobile app version will be released in the coming months.
“We’re not trying to replicate foreign platforms,” Fakaia concluded. “We’re building Toro as a home-grown solution designed around Solomon Islands’ unique constraints and opportunities. If we can make inclusive digital commerce work here, we can prove it’s possible anywhere in the Pacific.”
About Toro
Toro is Solomon Islands’ first integrated e-commerce platform combining product sales, service bookings, and digital content monetization. Founded in 2025 by CEO Angellina Fakaia, the platform launched with over 100 registered users and offers M-Selen mobile money payments, flexible delivery options through PUDO stations and Cab’It, and an affiliate marketing program led by brand ambassador Salote Ziru.
Media Contact:
Angellina Fakaia
Chief Executive Officer
Toro
Email: ceo@toro-official.store
Phone: +677 7756474
Website: https://www.toro-official.store/
Location: Ngossi Ridge, Honiara, Solomon Islands
SOURCE : Toro
