Off the wire
• Advisory: Schedules for NPC, CPPCC annual sessions on March 6  • President Xi warns against "Taiwan independence" in any form  • Roundup: Scores killed as fighting intensified in Afghan southern Helmand province: Officials  • President Xi stresses supply-side reform in Shanghai  • Ninth parliamentary election kicks off in Slovakia  • 1st Ld-Writethru-China Focus: All major targets of 12th Five-Year Plan fulfilled: Premier  • Spotlight: Lula's interrogation in Brazilian graft probe puts Rousseff's position in jeopardy  • 2nd LD-Writethru-China Focus: China sets five-year average annual growth above 6.5 pct  • 1st LD-Writethru: Cold front eases smog in north China  • Militants' attack claim 4 police lives in S. Afghanistan  
You are here: 　 Home

Interview: China's e-commerce giant brings broad outlook for Russian online retailers

Xinhua, March 5, 2016 Adjust font size:

By combining the sellers and buyers and removing barriers between them, China's e-commerce expertise has promoted online cross-border trade between Russia and China, and is expected to further tap the full potential of bilateral trade, the chief of AliExpress in Russia said.

As an online retail giant from China, AliExpress has both retail and wholesale platforms. "We are now actively developing a unique e-commerce ecosystem, where buyers and sellers, including the local ones, interact effectively with each other," Mark Zavadsky told Xinhua in a recent interview.

Cooperation with partners helps the company to build up the e-commerce ecosystem. Logistics companies PochtaRossii, SPSR Express and DPD are helping AliExpress to guarantee timely delivery, and the variety of payment methods are provided by companies such as QIWI Wallet, WebMoney, Yandex Money, Zavadsky explained.

"We are constantly working on developing the platform in order to enable our customers to find exactly what they need for optimal price, regardless of their location. This philosophy has largely contributed to the fact that the company's business in Russia is actively developing across the far-flung Russian regions," he added.

Based on China's experience in online trade which has played an irreplaceable role in people's daily life, AliExpress has grown to be the market leader in Russia and continues to show expanding dynamics.

"According to TNS Global, the platform has 24 million monthly active users that gives us a leading position among Russian e-commerce market players. We are continuously improving customer experience by offering them not only a huge range of goods, but also improved payment, delivery and return services," said Zavadsky.

The company has helped brought China's Single's Day online shopping frenzy which falls on each year's Nov. 11 to Russian customers.

There is a great demand for products from Russian online shoppers, Zavadsky said, citing that the number of pre-orders in the run-up to the Single's Day Shopping festival last year even exceeded the supply.

AliExpress is not the only Chinese e-commerce company that seeks to expand into the Russian market. In June 2015, JD.com, another online retail tycoon and the main competitor to Alibaba's Tmall, launched its Russian platform.

Competition is helpful to spur competitors to provide better shopping experience and service, which will benefit customers and promote sound development of the market.

"We are not afraid to break new ground and take innovative business decisions. Innovation and market leadership comes from truly listening to our customers and anticipating their needs," Zavadsky said.

During Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev's visit to China in December last year, he said there was vast potential for online trade and commerce between Russia and China. Zavadsky said AliExpress is glad to be part of this bilateral cooperation.

"In fact, we provide a two-way path for companies: Russian shoppers can get acquainted with the products of Chinese brands through AliExpress, and Russian companies are able to develop the Asian market with the Tmall platform," Zavadsky said.

"We believe that e-commerce cross-border trade between Russia and China has great potential to develop," he added. Endi