Alibaba's AliExpress welcomes American retailers; promotes Singles Day in U.S.
An international online marketplace owned by Chinese retail giant Alibaba Group is targeting U.S. retailers and shoppers.
AliExpress is opening its AliExpressDirect initiative that gives international sellers access to its global customer base to U.S.-based retailers. Local U.S. retailers will be able to open their own digital shop on AliExpress, with tools for optimizing product listings, pricing and promotions.
AliExpress will also provide U.S. sellers with marketing, business, and customer service support, including buyer inquiry handling and after-sales disputes, without charge. In addition, launching in 2025, application programming interface (API) integration will allow for synchronization of product listings, inventory, orders, and returns with U.S. sellers' existing systems.
"We're excited to support local businesses and are focused on reducing friction and risk in the onboarding process," said Jackie Lee, head of partnership and business development at AliExpress. "By leveraging our technology and resources, both growing and established businesses can easily explore a new channel that can help them increase visibility and boost sales."
Both Amazon and Walmart have recently made overtures to Chinese sellers that may also sell products to U.S. consumers via AliExpress. Media reports indicate that in a June meeting with select sellers of Chinese products, Amazon said it will launch a discount storefront featuring their merchandise.
Products will be directly shipped to U.S. consumers from warehouses in China and this model would enable Chinese sellers to avoid using the hosted Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA) fulfillment network to ship products to U.S. consumers.
Meanwhile, Walmart recently updated its Walmart Cross Border ocean shipping solution to provide seaborne transportation from select ports of loading in China to hosted Walmart Fulfillment Services (WFS) facilities in the U.S.
AliExpress operates in more than 100 countries and regions, with more than 150 million shoppers worldwide. According to the platform, it saw a 60% year-over-year increase in order volume in the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2023.
Singles Day targets U.S. shoppers
AliExpress will offer a number of deals and discounts specifically aimed at U.S. shoppers during the 17th annual Alibaba Global Shopping Festival Monday, Nov. 11 - Monday, Nov. 18 (known colloquially as "11.11" or "Singles Day").
The sales extravaganza will commence at 12:01 a.m. PST on Friday, Nov. 8 with a three-day warm-up period. U.S. consumers will be eligible for the following special promotions:
- The $1 Challenge, giving shoppers access to deals on select items for $1. To join, shoppers need to log on to the AliExpress app and shake their smartphone from Nov. 1 - 18, 2024. Users get three free shake opportunities daily during the event. Additional shakes can be won by inviting friends to join in. After shaking the app, users will gain access to deals and prizes, including coupon codes and tickets for "Mega Deal" draws on Nov. 11 and 18.
- Dollar deals give consumers the chance to buy products in the Dollar Express shopping channel for $1 for new customers, or three products for $1 each for existing customers. Dollar Express is a new dedicated channel that will showcase AliExpress' most affordable items.
- Unreal Deals offer daily prizes including video games, cameras and laptops.
- The Mega Deal, co-sponsored by global payments network Klarna, offers shoppers the chance to win a $10,000 flight credit or a $3,000 shopping credit on AliExpress.
AliExpress is also launching a TikTok dance challenge that offers a chance to win $100 in AliExpress shopping credits daily. Professional dancer Taylor Terry will kickstart the dance challenge along with several high-profile creators.
[READ MORE: AliExpress upgrades U.S. customer experience]
To compete, customers must perform their own interpretation of Taylor Terry's "Shake that App" dance using the exclusive campaign song, post on TikTok from Nov. 1-18, 2024 (multiple daily entries are allowed), include the hashtags #ShakeThatApp and #AliExpress, and follow @AliExpress on TikTok. Content that generates the most likes by 8:59 p.m. PST will be selected each day during the event.
