E-commerce aids local brands in gainning more popularity

Important role

Zhang Kuo, president of Alibaba.com, highlighted the resilience of China's foreign trade merchants and the increasingly important role the country has played in ensuring the stability of global industrial and supply chains.

Cui Lili, director of Shanghai University of Finance and Economics' Institute of E-commerce, said the popularity in overseas markets of products made in China shows these cost-effective commodities have gained wide recognition and raised brand reputation abroad in recent years.

"Chinese consumers usually tended to buy imported and foreign-branded products, but nowadays, China's major online shopping festivals have become more international, exerting greater influence on overseas shoppers who are increasingly willing to buy Chinese brands via cross-border e-commerce platforms," Cui said.

Faced with emerging opportunities, Cui said Chinese companies should make full use of cross-border e-commerce platforms to quickly grasp demand from overseas markets, learn more about relevant laws, regulations and quality standards in these countries, and adjust supply chains to make products that meet local requirements.

Amazon Global Selling, which helps Chinese merchants sell their products abroad, said the nation's vendors are paying more attention to building brands and expanding their presence in overseas markets, given the rapid growth of cross-border e-commerce.

The latest data from Amazon show that Chinese vendors sold billions of commodities to global consumers through the company's 18 overseas marketplaces last year. The number of Chinese sellers using Amazon's logistics services rose by more than 20 percent year-on-year, with their sales revenue achieving double-digit growth.

Amazon reported that the number of Chinese brand owners using its services rose by nearly three times in the past three years, and their turnover posted double-digit growth last year.

Cindy Tai, Amazon vice-president and head of Amazon Global Selling Asia, said in an earlier interview that China has a strong manufacturing base and competitive edge in supply chains, coupled with favorable policy support and the innovative spirit of the nation's entrepreneurs.

She said cross-border e-commerce is an unstoppable trend that is helping drive the transformation from "Made in China" to "Brands from China". With the nation's advantages in those areas, "we have full confidence in the prospects for cross-border e-commerce," Tai added.

Amazon will provide Chinese vendors with comprehensive and reliable logistics, inventory and supply chain solutions based on its global logistics capabilities and network advantages to help them achieve long-term sustainable growth and enhance global operational efficiency, she said.

It will also further improve new selection solutions, upgrade big data analytical tools for sellers, speed up localization efforts, and launch training centers to help vendors comprehensively improve their cross-border e-commerce skills, Tai said.