Alibaba and JD.com commit nearly US$330m to beef up parcel delivery efficiency, ahead of Singles’ Day shopping festival
Cainiao Network, Alibaba’s logistics arm, to set up 40,000 pickup facilities close to residential areas, while JD’s drones delivery fleet set to expand
China’s two largest e-commerce giants have committed nearly US$330 million to strengthening their parcel delivery efficiency, ahead of this year’s Singles’ Day shopping festival.
Cainiao Network, Alibaba’s logistics arm, is offering 1.5 billion yuan (US$228 million) to its Chinese merchandisers and logistics partners to build more warehouses and improve delivery efficiency ahead of the country’s annual “Singles’ Day” online shopping spree, on November 11.
Shi Miao, a Cainiao vice-president, said this year’s event is expected to generate a billion deliveries during November 11 and 16, citing figures from the State Post Bureau.
Cainiao will work with its partners to set up 40,000 pickup facilities close to residential areas which will allow consumers to fetch their goods directly instead of having to wait for them at home.
Some 200,000 “smart” courier cabinets will also be used this year within housing estates, where parcels can be collected by customers.
The Hangzhou-based company has already build what it calls “super warehouses” which are run by robots in a number of Chinese cities, including Shanghai, Tianjin, Zhejiang, Guangdong and Hubei, to strengthen its sorting efficiency.