Overseas warehouse, let foreign consumers receive "Made in China" faster (International theory)

People's Daily Overseas Edition 2025-03-24 14:57

This year's government work report proposes to promote the development of cross-border e-commerce, improve the cross-border delivery logistics system, and strengthen the construction of overseas warehouses.

Overseas warehouse is an important overseas node of cross-border e-commerce and a new type of foreign trade infrastructure. Today, the multi-point flowering of overseas warehouses is helping to accelerate the sea of domestic goods, but also make it more convenient for more foreign consumers to receive goods.

"Overseas warehouses help China's cross-border e-commerce exports"

In the overseas warehouse of Cainiao Bremen, Germany, the inventory data of Zhimi air purifier is synchronized with the front desk data in real time;In the New Jersey Cainiao large goods custom overseas warehouse, clamped forklift trucks are moving large furniture from Foshan, China;China's Hangzhou brand duvet, transported from the Lao factory to the Cainiao United States warehouse, and finally sent by Cainiao "a piece" to the hands of consumers...

A piece of "made in China" in the overseas warehouse storage, out of the warehouse, this is the current cross-border logistics efficient and smooth vivid scene.

According to the data of China's Ministry of Commerce in June 2024, China's cross-border e-commerce entities have exceeded 120,000, cross-border e-commerce industrial parks have exceeded 1,000, and overseas warehouses have exceeded 2,500.

Among them, as a representative cross-border e-commerce logistics service enterprise, Cainiao global supply chain has operated more than 40 overseas warehouses in 18 countries and regions in Europe, North America, Asia Pacific and other regions. Large home, auto parts, home appliances, daily chemicals, 3D printers and other categories of Chinese enterprises are working closely with Cainiao overseas warehouse.

The booming overseas warehouse has attracted extensive attention from foreign media. Reuters reported that Alibaba has made further investments in its Cainiao global supply chain in the context of the growing cross-border e-commerce market. Building logistics infrastructure overseas will help expand Alibaba's global logistics network and shape the company's competitive edge in cross-border e-commerce business. Currently, Cainiao has warehouses in many countries, including Indonesia and Belgium, and provides supply chain management solutions to other logistics companies in order to provide faster logistics services to overseas consumers.

"Chinese e-commerce companies such as Alibaba AliExpress and Pindoduo's Temu are accelerating overseas expansion, going all out in many markets around the world, and greatly reducing delivery time by building overseas warehouses." South Korea's Daily Business Daily reported.

"Overseas warehouse services can provide 'consignment' services, which is a good way for merchants to conduct online business without having to deal with inventory. This business model allows merchants to show their products to customers on e-commerce platforms, and third-party logistics will ship the actual products. "Merchants don't have to worry about storage, packaging or shipping, just focus on customer service and marketing." Kenyan media Nairobiwire reported that Chinese e-commerce platform Kilimall has set up an overseas warehouse in Africa, and its e-commerce business and overseas warehouse service model have been recognized in the Kenyan market.

"Overseas warehouses help China's cross-border e-commerce exports." Singapore's "Straits Times" reported that China actively strengthens the construction of cross-border e-commerce infrastructure and logistics system, and promotes the high-quality development of overseas warehouses to achieve the rapid transportation of goods. "Overseas warehouses are useful because they allow Chinese sellers to stock up in the destination country and deliver the goods whenever an order comes in."

"The shorter the delivery time, the more likely consumers are to place orders"

Thanks to the construction of overseas warehouses, after foreign consumers place orders for Chinese goods on cross-border e-commerce platforms, the goods are delivered faster, and they can also enjoy a faster return and after-sales experience.

Reuters noted that in the US market, the usual delivery time of cross-border e-commerce platforms is 6-22 days, and overseas warehouses will greatly speed up the delivery process. On the basis of the "global 5-day delivery" service, Cainiao is committed to reducing the delivery time from 5 days to 2-3 days in international markets such as the United States, so that foreign consumers can receive packages faster after placing orders on cross-border e-commerce platforms.

"Overseas warehouses store goods closer to shoppers, helping cross-border e-commerce platforms shorten delivery times. This gives cross-border e-commerce platforms the opportunity to sell larger and more profitable products, such as furniture and home appliances." "The Financial Times reported.

Vietnam's Tuoi Tre news website reported that China's overseas warehouses have increased along Vietnam's border in recent years. Many Chinese enterprises have invested in the construction of warehousing and sorting centers in Vietnam. Thanks to these facilities, goods ordered from Chinese e-commerce platforms can be delivered to customers in Hanoi within 1-2 days and Ho Chi Minh City within 3-5 days.

"In ASEAN-China cross-border e-commerce parks, the modern storage facilities for goods exported to Vietnam are impressive." The warehouse facilities have helped product sellers and e-commerce platforms reduce transport times and costs, the newspaper said. The logistics park also has a customs clearance center and is only 295 km from Hanoi. As the warehouse is close to the border, Vietnamese consumers can quickly receive goods ordered on e-commerce platforms or in broadcast rooms.

"Overseas buyers from the order to receive the goods, the international distribution process takes about 5-10 days, but if it is overseas warehouse direct delivery, goods can be delivered to customers in 1-3 days, and customer service such as return and exchange is more convenient." South Korea's Daily Business Daily reported.

Singapore's Straits Times interviewed a Chinese company operating an e-commerce business in Shenzhen, which uses its overseas warehouse in Brazil to sell household goods in the Brazilian market. "The shorter the delivery time, the more likely consumers are to place an order," the merchant said.

"Chinese logistics companies actively open smart storage facilities"

At Cainiao Sydney Warehouse, smart sorting equipment is in operation. The equipment measures the volume of a package, weighs it, scans the bar code, and automatically identifies, processes and sorts it. All operational data is transmitted to Cainiao warehouse management system in real time. By accurately measuring the weight and size of the package, the intelligent sorting device effectively avoids the problem of false charges and fines caused by the end service provider due to size or weight discrepancies. This automation upgrade significantly improves the efficiency of logistics services and reduces overseas operating costs for Chinese merchants.

At present, overseas warehouses using intelligent management are booming in many places. Many overseas warehouses have used smart equipment to improve operational efficiency and service quality.

China's Ministry of Commerce said it will support foreign trade enterprises and logistics enterprises to make good use of overseas warehouse resources, improve the level of specialization, scale and intelligence, and make high-quality Chinese products more convenient to reach overseas consumers.

"In Vietnam, Chinese logistics companies are actively opening smart storage facilities and working with Vietnamese warehouse owners to optimize costs and increase productivity." According to Vietnam's Youth Daily, e-commerce platforms such as Shopee and TikTokShop have announced the establishment of intelligent and optimized logistics systems. Cainiao has also built two smart logistics centers in Dong Nai and Long An provinces in southern Vietnam to support e-commerce platforms such as Lazada and Alibaba AliExpress. Each center can sort between 1 million and 2.5 million orders per day." The report said.

"With e-commerce booming, Chinese logistics companies are expanding their warehouses in the United States and strengthening their logistics networks in the United States." Nikkei Asia reported that Chinese fast fashion platform Shein and shopping app Temu, which are popular overseas, are also working with third-party logistics companies to build overseas warehouses to provide better warehousing and faster delivery services. Companies like Alibaba are also expanding their warehouse space in the United States. Cainiao, Alibaba's logistics arm, said it is accelerating its overseas expansion to meet global consumer demand for delivery timeliness. (Reporter Lin Zihan)