“The digital environment is increasingly competitive, it is not easy; “But companies can take advantage of the support offered by platforms like AliExpress”

Interview with Estela Ye, general director of AliExpress in Spain, Portugal and Italy

AliExpress is one of the most important e-commerce platforms. On the occasion of its 11th anniversary, we have interviewed Estela Ye, general director of AliExpress in Spain, Portugal and Italy.

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Next March 28 is AliExpress's 11th anniversary. What does this anniversary mean for the company and how are you going to celebrate it?

 

Estela Ye: “At AliExpress we are celebrating our 11th anniversary edition, we do it as usual with a great event of offers for consumers around the world. And the promotion that we started on March 29 and ended on April 2 is one of AliExpress's largest sales campaigns, after 11-11 or World Shopping Day.

 

For us, this type of event not only aims to offer the consumer entertainment and great deals, but also represents an opportunity for companies that sell their products on our platform to take advantage of one of the most important sales events of the year on AliExpress. Because we do a lot of marketing actions to increase traffic and purchases on our site. 

 

We increasingly seek to make Spanish sellers more protagonists of this anniversary celebration because we want to help them sell more and further afield, not only sell in the Spanish market but also export through our platform. And that role is increasingly evident. 

 

For example, this year we already have nearly 800 local companies registered, a number similar to consolidated events such as 11-11 or Black Friday, and all types of companies will participate, from national brands such as Secotec, Monix or international brands such as Nero. And also We are expanding more and more categories. This year there are companies in the beverage and food sector, national brands such as Chocolates Lacasa or international firms such as Diageo, but especially many SMEs, from companies that make their products by hand to distributors of consumer products, are already registered in this campaign."

 

Almost a year ago we interviewed you to find out how the pandemic was affecting e-commerce. What has changed since then for e-commerce in general and for AliExpress in particular? 

 

HEY: “Although digitalization had already begun to be implemented, confinement and restrictions have accelerated this process, absolutely. And has achieved greater relevance of the digital channel. If before we saw e-commerce as just another option or even thinking about the future, in recent months all companies have accelerated digitalization processes. And it has shown us that electronic commerce is not only a part of the present but that companies have to opt for that channel. 

 

And in fact there are recent studies that predict that The e-commerce sector in Spain will grow at an average rate of 7,62% until 2024, is the most important evolution in the entire euro zone. However, the percentage of companies that sell online in Spain is low; According to studies, only 10% of SMEs in Spain are selling products or services online. At the same time, it means that the size of the opportunity is very large, and due to the pandemic it has accelerated.

 

At AliExpress we have to work harder and harder to be able to support Spanish companies that want to join the digital world through our platform.

 

During the pandemic, in the 2020 edition of 11-11, AliExpress generated record sales for its international sellers, with a more than three-fold increase in the participation of sellers outside of China and a 600% increase in the number of products listed globally. And in particular Spanish sellers who participated in that event recorded an increase of more than 300% in gross merchandise volume. 

 

“During the pandemic we can see that companies are accelerating their digitalization process and from AliExpress we have seen that very evident increase.”

 

Have Spanish transactions and sellers on the platform increased?

 

EY: “Yes, in terms of the number of sellers in Spain, in terms of the number of products published and sales as well, in all angles it has increased.”

 

And compared to other markets, how is the situation in Spain?

 

HEY: “Spain is ahead, it is the third country in terms of global market (for AliExpress), after Russia and the United States. We are making an effort with local companies so that they can sell better. For Europe, not counting Russia, Spain is leading.”

 

Have you launched any new products or services on the platform in the last 12 months or do you plan to launch them soon?

 

HEY: “It’s crucial that we provide more support so that local businesses can sell more on AliExpress. Right now, we already have over 8.000 local small and medium-sized businesses that are part of our network. In 2020, we launched an initiative called 'Together with Your Business,' and under that umbrella…” We decided not to charge sales commissions to more than 8.000 Spanish companies for two months. We have calculated that we have been able to generate accumulated savings of more than one million euros. 

 

We are launching many trainings, workshops, online content, tutorials, in 2020 we have done more than 100 trainings adapted to different levels of digital knowledge. 

 

And we are working on supporting companies on logistics issues; We now have more than 10 local partners for the logistics area, to improve delivery times. And we work with a network of 100 partners specialized in different areas to help SMEs that want to start their online business.

 

As a novelty, we have implemented the “Growing together” program; we have already been able to support more than 2.000 companies. We have established a group of AliExpress account managers and offer that service absolutely free of charge. This is individualized monitoring to serve the companies that are emerging on our platform. We advise them on what tasks, from deciding to open the store, publishing the products, to more advanced tools on how to acquire traffic, how to participate in promotions, how to improve conversion, instead of learning it on their own we advise them on all these tasks. during their maturity at AliExpress, and specific development opportunities they could undertake to take full advantage of AliExpress's benefits. We are going to guide you hand in hand so that your business on AliExpress can grow faster. 

 

Those who can enjoy this service for free, we want them to be involved with us, use our tools, participate in our training... We believe it is a very valuable support.”

 

For those Spanish companies that do not yet sell online or are not on your platform, what would you recommend for them to take the step of selling online? what do they have to know?

 

HEY: “Only 10% of SMEs are selling digitally. There are 90% of companies for which selling online is new. The digital environment is increasingly competitive, it is not easy. You have to have their knowledge, their techniques, it's not about publishing some products on the online channel and I can start selling. Omnichannel is one of the keys to success. 

 

The first thing is that companies from the highest level of decision-making must think that it is a trend and an effort must be made to enter the online world. And on the other hand They have to take advantage of the support that the platforms offer. We are very aware that it is not easy; you have to learn all the tools we offer to generate traffic, how to correctly publish your catalog, you have to improve the quality of the photos, the phrases to sell your products to improve conversion… it is complicated but precisely that we offer a lot of support. 

 

First, the decision needs to be made at the management level: 'Okay, it's a trend, and we need to be on board.' Then, a team needs to be built that's committed to us. They should leverage our tools, and I think that will show you that the digital world isn't so complicated after all.