Alibaba.com brings more global opportunities to Australian businesses

Alibaba.com is bringing more global opportunities to the Australian market with enhanced local support and services.

Together with its newly appointed official Australian partner Yaru Ventures, both companies will make it easier than ever for local businesses to tap into global opportunities through a series of programmes tailored to their needs.

Global opportunities for Australian exporters

Alibaba.com is one of the world’s largest players in the B2B e-commerce space, already being used in over 190 countries and regions with buyers and suppliers around the world leveraging the platform to expand and scale their businesses. In the 12 months ended March 31, 2022, more than 40 million buyers sourced business opportunities or completed transactions on the platform. A business unit of Alibaba Group, Alibaba.com’s wide range of features, tools, and services are designed to streamline B2B sourcing, buying and selling.

Four top Australian export sectors – food & beverage, agriculture, health and beauty and minerals & metallurgy – feature among the top ten buyer categories on Alibaba.com. Some of Australia’s top export destinations, including the USA, Japan and Indonesia, are among the top 20 buying countries on the platform, reinforcing opportunities for Australian exporters of all sizes.

“Australia is known for exporting high-quality products. With the global pandemic, buyers worldwide are now paying more attention to how products are made and what they are made of. Australian brands have developed a global reputation of clean, healthy, and safe, which is hitting the right spot and generating high levels of interest and demand across the world,” said Pier Smulders, General Manager of Alibaba Australia and New Zealand.

Globally, a report from UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) shows that the B2B e-commerce market is 4x larger than the B2C market highlighting how important it is for brands and manufacturers to develop e-commerce for their B2B/wholesale activities.

Education and marketing programmes tailored to local needs

Yaru Ventures has recently been appointed as the official partner of Alibaba.com in Australia. Through this partnership, Alibaba.com and Yaru Ventures will create a joint initiative to support Australian brands, suppliers and manufacturers in finding new distribution opportunities in more markets globally. Alibaba.com and Yaru Ventures will support Australian businesses onboarding onto the platform and undertake a series of events and marketing initiatives to promote Australian businesses. They will also provide dedicated support to help Australian businesses secure new distribution partnerships and training on market entry strategy, compliance and e-commerce marketing.

“Despite a host of pandemic-related challenges, Alibaba.com aims to provide businesses across a wide range of verticals, sizes, and geographic locations an opportunity to market their products to more buyers in more places,” added Smulders.

As part of the programme to raise awareness in Australia, Alibaba.com is hosting a webinar on 25 August for Australian businesses to find out more about the solution and how it can help them reach a whole new audience.

As an official partner, Yaru Ventures, an Australian-based global market entry specialist, has already developed a thorough understanding of the Alibaba.com ecosystem and the ways to unlock a wider buying audience. Yaru Ventures also understands the challenges facing Australian exporters based on their years of experience working with diverse brands on their market entry strategies and operations.

“At Yaru Ventures, we’re continually seeking out innovative ways to maximise reach and efficiency when scaling Australian businesses. We’re thrilled to have been selected as the official partner for Alibaba.com in Australia, recognising the trusted and established network we have built across global markets over the years,” said Will Zhao, CEO of Yaru Ventures.

“With trade shows hindered by the pandemic and digital B2B distribution on the rise, Alibaba.com presents a unique opportunity to showcase the quality of Australian exports to new markets via a platform that makes it easy and is effectively open to the world 24/7. The costs are also claimable under Austrade’s Export Market Development Grant*, continuing to support the growth of Australian businesses in international markets,” added Zhao.

As a brand-building partner for high-quality Australian businesses looking to scale their brands globally, Yaru Ventures specialises in the China and South East Asia markets. Yaru’s team of experts works closely with their select client partners to strategise, execute and manage their market expansion to create sustainable global businesses.