SOUTH KOREA. Cainiao Smart Logistics Network (Cainiao Network), the logistics arm of Alibaba Group Holding Limited, has entered a partnership MOU agreement with Korea SMEs and Startups Agency (KOSME) to officially serve as the logistics partner for SME export business in South Korea.
The news comes hot on the heels of Cainiao having announced a strategic plan to implement global smart supply chain technologies in Hainan to meet the “explosive” growth in consumer demand within the island province.
The MOU aims to promote bilateral trade and foster multi-faceted collaboration to spearhead the expansion and development of the ecommerce industry between South Korea and China. Cainiao described the agreement as a “major milestone” as it extends its logistics services to merchants outside the Alibaba ecosystem in South Korea to make it easier for them to tap into overseas markets.
In line with the MOU, Cainiao will be KOSME’s official logistics partner for its logistics subsidy programme. This will provide up to KRW15 million (US$13,450) in subsidies per company to cover approximately 70% of their export expenses such as ecommerce logistics. The objective is to help SMEs tide over the uncertain economic situation by accessing the Chinese market.
Last year, the programme facilitated the logistics for over 3.7 million online exports and reduced SMEs’ export logistics costs by an average of 48% or up to 82% when benchmarked against Express Mail Service’s (EMS) market rate across ten major countries.
As part of the agreement, SMEs will be able to leverage Cainiao’s one-stop logistics management system which provides real-time insights and support across warehouse inventory, order fulfilment, delivery status, billing, and any forms of anomalies for immediate rectification.
“SMEs are the growth engines of the economy,” said James Zhao, General Manager for Global Supply Chain, Cainiao Network. “We are honoured to be selected as KOSME’s official logistics partner to support millions of South Korean SMEs in their expansion into new markets to establish business resilience.
“As a trusted partner to KOSME and Korean SMEs, our goal is to make cross-border logistics as seamless as possible, by taking care of the digitalised full-chain, including order fulfilment, local and overseas B2B and B2C warehousing, international shipping, customs clearance as well as first and last mile logistics. This will offer SMEs a greater peace of mind to better focus on their sales and growth strategies.”
This news comes after Cainiao’s official launch in South Korea last year to provide end-to-end logistics services for businesses’ import and export needs. The service includes over 15,000sq m of warehouse space in South Korea, sea and air freight – six cargo ships and six cargo planes weekly – and various logistics partnerships that provide first and last mile delivery and facilitate customs clearance in South Korea and China.
This full-chain service has brought about up to 50% improvement in shipping efficiency, reducing total shipping time from 10 to 13 days to just 5-7 days, Cainiao said.
