SE-Education

What SE-Education does

SE-ED (legal name: SE-ED Public Company Limited (บริษัท ซีเอ็ดยูเคชั่น จำกัด (มหาชน))) is a publicly listed Thai book and educational media retailer and distributor founded in 1974 and headquartered in Bang Na, Bangkok. The company is described as Thailand's largest bookstore chain, operating the nationwide SE-ED Book Center physical branch network alongside the se-ed.com e-commerce platform and the cross-platform SE-ED Reader application for iOS, Android, and Windows. Its product portfolio spans four core formats: physical books (หนังสือเล่ม), e-books in PDF, audiobooks (หนังสือเสียง), and digital products/e-vouchers (สินค้าดิจิทัล) covering online courses priced 990–1,890 THB. The platform also distributes lifestyle merchandise, pre-order services, and an Oxford Placement Test English assessment.

SE-ED's technology stack centers on a proprietary e-commerce platform with an integrated digital content delivery system. The SE-ED Coin virtual currency enables 24/7 digital content purchases, while SE-ED Reader provides cross-device reading and audio playback. An AI-powered search feature supports product discovery. Social login integrations with Facebook, Twitter, and LINE are supported, and payment processing runs through a PCI-DSS compliant Payment Gateway so the company does not store credit card data directly. The company operates under Thai PDPA-aligned data practices.

The business model is omnichannel direct-to-consumer retail with one-time purchase pricing on physical and digital goods. Distribution combines owned e-commerce, owned retail branches, and in-platform specialty branded shops (OXFORD, MIS, IPST/สสวท, I AM THE BEST, BOOKSCAPE, REDMONZTER, INSPAL) that aggregate publisher catalogs. Customer segments are diversified across exam-preparing students, working professionals pursuing self-development, children and parents, and fiction/literature readers, all served within Thailand. Reported financials show revenues cycling between 54.7T and 62.4T units from 2021 to 2025 with net income positive only in 2023, indicating earnings volatility against a stable revenue base.

Name

SE-Education

Legal name

บริษัท ซีเอ็ดยูเคชั่น จำกัด (มหาชน)

Website

https://se-ed.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

SE-ED is Thailand's largest publicly traded bookstore chain, founded in 1974. It operates the nationwide SE-ED Book Center retail network alongside se-ed.com and the SE-ED Reader app, selling physical books, e-books, audiobooks, and online courses primarily to Thai students, professionals, parents, and general readers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Book Retail and Educational Content Distribution

NAICS

Book Retailers and News Dealers (4592), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) & Wellbeing Digital Curriculum (EDAFACAM)

Keywords

• Book retail
• Educational publishing
• E-book distribution
• Online bookstore
• Digital content retail

Headquarters

HQ city

Bang Na

HQ country

Thailand

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Physical Book Sales: Sale of printed books through online platform and physical bookstore branches. Products include textbooks, exam preparation books, novels, comics, manga, and general interest titles.
2. E-Book and Audiobook Sales: Digital content sales including e-books (PDF format) and audiobooks. Delivered through SE-ED Coin system or direct purchase.
3. Digital Products and Online Courses: Sale of digital vouchers and online courses covering topics such as professional skills, language learning, marketing, and personal development. Price points range from ฿990 to ฿1,890.
4. E-Gift Voucher System: Electronic gift vouchers for purchasing products on the platform. Provides gifting functionality for customers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

SE-ED is a book and educational media publisher and distributor operating Thailand's largest bookstore chain and online book platform. It sells physical books, e-books, audiobooks, digital products (online courses and e-vouchers), and lifestyle merchandise through its e-commerce platform, mobile apps, and physical SE-ED Book Center branches. The platform additionally offers digital content delivery via the SE-ED Reader app and SE-ED Coin virtual currency system.

Product overview

SE-ED operates as a multi-format online bookstore platform offering four core product types: physical books (หนังสือเล่ม), e-books (E-Book), audiobooks (หนังสือเสียง), and digital products/vouchers (สินค้าดิจิทัล). The platform extends its offering with lifestyle merchandise products, pre-order services for upcoming releases, a proprietary SE-ED Reader application for e-book reading across iOS, Android, and Windows, and a virtual currency system called SE-ED Coin for purchasing digital content. Customers can also access discount coupons, E-Gift Vouchers, and online courses through the platform. The platform features category browsing across novels, educational materials, self-development, business, language learning, children's books, manga, and lifestyle products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Physical Books (หนังสือเล่ม) Physical printed books sold and shipped to customers across multiple categories including educational materials, novels, self-help, and lifestyle content. Available through the SE-ED online platform and physical bookstore branches.
• E-Books Digital books in PDF and other electronic formats available for purchase and reading on the SE-ED platform via the SE-ED Reader app.
• Audiobooks (หนังสือเสียง) Audio book content available for purchase and listening through the SE-ED platform.
• Online Courses and Digital Products (สินค้าดิจิทัล) Digital vouchers and online course access codes covering business, technology, and language learning topics such as SEO, UX Design, Google Workspace, Korean TOPIK, copywriting, and video editing. Priced ฿990–฿1,890.
• SE-ED Reader Application Dedicated e-book reading application available for iOS, Android, and Windows platforms, enabling customers to read purchased e-books on their devices. Available on App Store and Google Play.
• Lifestyle Products (สินค้าไลฟ์สไตล์) Non-book lifestyle merchandise including wellness products, masks, stationery, maps, and accessories sold alongside books on the SE-ED platform.
• Oxford Placement Test Online English proficiency assessment tool available for purchase, aligned with Oxford's standardized testing framework.
• E-Gift Voucher Electronic gift vouchers that can be purchased and redeemed for products on the SE-ED platform. Single-use, non-splittable, no cash redemption.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• SE-ED ShopcoreOthersIn-house branded store section within SE-ED platform offering curated product selections and promotional campaigns.
• OXFORDminorOthersSpecialty branded shop section for English language learning materials and dictionaries.
• I AM THE BESTminorOthersSpecialty shop section offering motivational and self-development books.
• MIS (สถาบันพัฒนาคุณภาพวิชาการ)minorOthersSpecialty shop for educational materials and academic resources from MIS institute.
• สสวท (IPST - Institute for the Promotion of Teaching Science and Technology)minorOthersOfficial shop for science and mathematics textbooks published by IPST for students and educators.
• INSPALminorOthersSpecialty shop section for educational materials.
• BOOKSCAPEminorOthersSpecialty book shop section with curated selections.
• Payment Gateway ProviderscoreTechnology or IntegrationSecure payment processing through Payment Gateway with PCI-DSS compliance for credit card transactions. SE-ED does not store credit card information directly.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Kinokuniya: Japanese bookstore chain operating multiple stores in Thailand, competing in imported English-language, manga, and general book retail in the same physical-channel market as SE-ED.

Direct peers

• B2S (Thailand): Former competitor Thai bookstore chain offering physical and digital book retail, historically a direct local rival to SE-ED in the bookstore segment.
• Naiin: One of Thailand's largest bookstore chains and online book retailers, directly competing with SE-ED across physical and e-commerce channels in the Thai-language book market.
• Matichon: Major Thai publisher and media company that operates bookstore and e-book distribution, overlapping with SE-ED on print publishing, distribution, and digital content.
• MEB (Modern Education Book Center): Thai educational materials retailer specializing in textbooks and exam preparation, directly competing with SE-ED's core student and exam-candidate segment.
• Asia Books: Long-standing Thai bookstore chain specializing in English-language and imported books, a direct competitor in physical retail and online book sales.
• KoomKoom: Thai independent bookstore and publisher with a curated online storefront, competing with SE-ED in lifestyle, fiction, and design-oriented book categories.

Broad incumbents

• Barnes & Noble: Large US bookstore chain and e-book retailer with a comparable omnichannel model of physical stores plus Nook digital platform — broadly indicative of SE-ED's omnichannel trajectory.
• Rakuten Kobo: Global e-book and audiobook retailer with a dedicated e-reader device, the closest international analog to SE-ED's e-book reader and digital content distribution business.

Emerging players

• Readery: Thai-focused online book subscription and bookstore platform, representing an emerging digital-first challenger to SE-ED's e-commerce and digital content business.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SBC_Books
• Facebookfacebook.com/SBC.fans

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SE-Education