Hermes subsidiary BorderGuru, which allows online retailers to sell and deliver their goods around the world, has become an official logistics partner of China's Alibaba Group on behalf of Cainiao, the logistics provider of the Chinese e-commerce giant.
Under the deal with Alibaba, BorderGuru will manage the whole cross-border shipping process for European clients looking to sell their products in China.
As the world’s leading online retailer with a gross merchandise value of around €410 billion and over 280 million customers, Alibaba offers Chinese private consumers popular international brands through its Tmall Global shopping platform. These include original goods from Europe, the USA and elsewhere in the world. Currently, Tmall Global features about 5,400 international brands from a total of 53 countries.
"We are really proud to have become Alibaba's contractual partner – the number one in China and consequently in global web sales. And we truly appreciate the trust placed in us," Martin Kreiter, responsible for e-commerce business development at Hermes and Managing Director of BorderGuru GmbH, said. Items imported from Germany include, in particular, pharmaceutical products, nutritional supplements, baby products and foods, as well as organically produced children's clothing and luxury items. "The label 'Made in Germany' is still a real sign of quality for many international customers.”
As part of the collaboration with Alibaba's logistics subsidiary Cainiao, BorderGuru provides IT-assisted management of the whole logistics chain between Europe and China ranging from the pick-up at the retailer's warehouse in Europe through to the transfer to the 'last mile' in China.
James Zhao, Director of Global Import at Cainiao, commented: "We are delighted to have secured the services of the experienced logistics specialist Hermes with its proven track record in retailing. In conjunction with its strong e-commerce base, BorderGuru is for us a logical partner we can trust with our continued expansion in Europe."
The international transport comprising all customs clearance formalities will be processed through Hermes, with BorderGuru relying on the growing logistics network of the Hermes Group. In China, Cainiao is responsible for the import clearance and distribution to the Chinese end-consumer.
The Alibaba concept and the expansion of its Tmall platform is paying off as Tmall Global is still by far the easiest way for many Chinese customers to buy brand products from Europe at favourable prices. On “Singles Day” in November, the biggest shopping event in the Chinese calendar, Alibaba Group generated revenues of over €13 billion on one single day. Retailers from a variety of sectors are already using BorderGuru services and are active on Tmall.
Alongside this collaboration with Cainiao, BorderGuru offers further opportunities for European retailers to tap into the Chinese market. Those retailers who want to expand globally can also sell to Chinese customers directly from their local webshop and have the products delivered through BorderGuru.
"With its integrative services, BorderGuru is really optimising Hermes' existing portfolio in global e-commerce. The partnership between Alibaba, Cainiao, and BorderGuru is now showing that we are on the right path with our e-commerce services and that we are helping satisfy growing demand," Kreiter added. In future, the company plans to offer more attractive opportunities for European customers to enter potential e-commerce markets abroad.
Meanwhile, in the UK, Hermes is trialling a new in-store printing solution at more than 30 myHermes parcel shops across Leeds. This avoids the need for customers who book a delivery through myHermes website to print off and attach the necessary label to the parcel before dropping it off at one of the 4,500 Hermes parcel shops in the UK. Hermes is testing the new scanning and printing system following suggestions from several customers.
With the new solution, customers can book and pay using a mobile device and will then receive a booking confirmation per e-mail with a QR code which they can scan via their mobile devices in-store and the printer will distribute the label.
Martijn de Lange, Chief Operating Officer at myHermes, said: “We have installed this solution at some of our busiest myHermes parcel shops in the city of Leeds, with a view of a nationwide rollout later this year. Whilst smartphones and tablets continue to grow in popularity, there are still a large proportion of people that do not own a printer. Therefore, we wanted to find a solution that was convenient, accessible and easy to use. We look forward to receiving valuable customer feedback over the coming weeks.”
