Online retail giant AliExpress will allow Russian vendors to sell their goods through its website from Nov. 11, as part of the Chinese company's rapid expansion in the country, news agency RBC reported Tuesday.
The first companies to start selling via AliExpress include Wikimart, an online supermarket, electronics brand Technosila and DIY and gardening store 220 Volt, as well as official resellers of international brands in Russia like home appliances retailer Redmond, cosmetics brand L'Oreal and clothing seller Baon, the company's chief in Russia, Mark Zavadsky, told RBC.
In total, about 20 Russian retailers will be available on AliExpress from Nov. 11, he said.
Adding Russian names to the roster of Chinese companies already selling to Russians on AliExpress will help the company to close gaps in its product range, Zavadsky said, giving the example of Technosila, which will sell heavy home appliances that are difficult to deliver from China.
More Russian brands will be able to join the platform in the future, he added.
AliExpress, part of China's largest e-commerce company the Alibaba Group, also hopes opening access to Russian retailers will further boost its sales in the country.
Last year, 55 percent of all Russian purchases on foreign online stores were made on AliExpress, RBC reported, citing research company Data Insight. In September, the company's website notched up 24 million visitors, according to data from market researcher TNS Russia cited by the news agency.
Russian retailers planning to start selling goods on AliExpress told RBC that the platform would help them gain access to customers in far-flung Russian regions, thanks to the Chinese firm's well-developed logistics.
According to Zavadsky, Moscow and St. Petersburg account for only 15 percent of orders made through AliExpress in Russia.
Russian retailers will operate on AliExpress under conditions similar to those that apply to Chinese vendors, paying a commission of 5 percent on orders delivered through the site.
