Amazon doubles down on China e-commerce strategy as rivals Shein, Temu gain traction

American e-commerce leader Amazon.com has introduced a slew of initiatives as part of a renewed strategy to help Chinese merchants sell abroad, at a time when China-founded rivals like Shein and Temu are gaining traction.

The moves include an innovation centre in the southern tech hub of Shenzhen, the first in the Asia-Pacific region, that would integrate the firm’s industrial, expert and supplier sources to help merchants “build brands, promote products and digitalise operations”, Amazon announced at a four-day event in the city that kicked off on Tuesday.

It also added Brazil to its list of destinations for Chinese merchants, ramping up the competition in Latin America. In April, fashion unicorn Shein named Brazil as its manufacturing and export hub for the region, while Temu, the rising online shopping platform owned by PDD Holdings, set up in the country in June.

To woo Chinese merchants, Amazon said it would allow them to use its supply chain network, including warehousing, distribution and couriers. In addition, Amazon will upgrade its selling platform and explore the use of artificial intelligence to facilitate “easy, efficient and legitimate businesses”, it said in a statement on Tuesday.

The decision comes as the company sees growing potential for the “Made in China, sold on Amazon” community. In the year through to the end of September, the number of items sold from China via Amazon increased by more than 20 per cent, while the number of merchants whose revenue reached US$10 million rose nearly 30 per cent, the company said.

The company “is honoured to work hand in hand with Chinese sellers … to sell high-quality Chinese products to the world,” said Cindy Tai, vice-president of Amazon and head of global selling in Asia. “The cross-border e-commerce industry is increasingly becoming a new driving force for China’s foreign trade.”

Despite betting big on cross-border e-commerce, Amazon has abandoned several other businesses in China, including third-party merchandise on its marketplace, its Kindle e-book service and a local app store.