WCA and Alibaba sign global partnership agreement
WCA and Alibaba Group have concluded a co-operation agreement that will see approved WCA member companies integrated into the Alibaba.com logistics platform for cross-border e-commerce shipments. WCA will provide its professional support in vetting and approving international logistics providers for the customers of Alibaba.com. Approved providers will have full access to compete for logistics orders generated on the Alibaba.com platform.
WCA and Alibaba.com have agreed parameters and standards of service, as well as offering all participants a protection scheme that includes compensation for qualifying transactions.
“The fact that Alibaba.com has recognised the quality, global strength and professionalism of WCA and its members will open up vast new opportunities for business growth for independent freight forwarders”, said Dan March, WCA’s Chief Executive Officer.
“Many of our member companies are already heavily involved in many facets of cross-border eCommerce logistics. The strict qualification process for our newly-formed WCA eCommerce network will provide reassurance that the services provided by our members can facilitate merchants on Alibaba.com to accelerate their global trading.”
The collaboration will start this month (January), for shipments to the US, India and the UK.
Steve Su, Director, Alibaba Logistics said: “We are thrilled to partner with WCA, a global network with well-connected global resources, to provide fast and convenient shipping options for our members. We are committed to offering premium services to global SMEs on our platform who are looking to scale up their business presence through cross-border trading. We are confident partnering with a leading global logistics alliance such as WCA will help us achieve that goal.”
WCA last year set up an e-commerce network, which more than 120 companies have applied to join.
Alibaba has been expanding its relationships with forwarders recently. In October, for example, , US-based forwarder SEKO Logistics signed a deal with Alibaba.com Hong Kong.
