Alibaba Targets 2 Bln Consumers

SHANGHAI, Nov 11 (Bernama) -- Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group (Alibaba) targets to serve two billion global consumers and makes deliveries anywhere in the world within 72 hours. Alibaba said it aimed to support 10 million small and medium enterprises globally through its 11.11 Global Shopping Festival over the next 10 years. In a statement on Friday, the group said the target was driven by its aim to replicate the successful ‘Five Global’ initiatives: Global Buy, Global Sell, Global Pay, Global Delivery and Global Travel’ model implemented in China since 2014. “Through the group’s Tmall Global e-commerce platform, international brands and retailers will be able to sell their products directly without having physical operations in China. “This year’s festival will leverage artificial intelligence and augment reality platforms to empower merchants to operate more efficiently and facilitate a more engaging consumer experience,” Alibaba said in conjunction with the launch of the festival which is also known as the ‘Singles Day’. The festival, which is the world’s largest 24-hour online shopping event, will kick off at 12 am on 11 Nov 2017. Alibaba turned Nov 11 into an online shopping event in 2009 and trademarked the 11.11 name in 2012. -- BERNAMA