Alibaba is deepening its partnership with Austin-based ShipStation as the eCommerce and tech giant faces pressure to expand globally beyond its core market in China and Southeast Asia.
On Tuesday (Oct. 13), eCommerce shipping firm ShipStation announced that it will now be able to provide a “seamless fulfillment process” to U.S. merchants selling their wares on Alibaba.
The move, in turn, makes ShipStation the “first U.S. shipping solution to officially integrate with Alibaba.com,” the company stated in a press release, noting that it broadens and builds upon an initial collaboration between the two companies that first began last year.
In 2019, Alibaba opened its platform to U.S. B2B sellers looking to sell domestically, with ShipStation then joining Alibaba’s “ecosystem of collaborators” to provide shipping and other business services.
In this next stage of the collaboration, sellers will be able to leverage ShipStation’s integration with Alibaba “to more efficiently process, fulfill and ship the orders that Alibaba.com generates,” the two companies noted in the joint press statement.
“By integrating with ShipStation, B2B merchants who sell on Alibaba.com gain seamless access to efficient shipping software and discounted carrier rates,” said John Caplan, president of North America and Europe at Alibaba.com. “Additionally, the integration allows ShipStation customers who sell on other platforms to add Alibaba.com as a channel and further grow their business.”
Alibaba’s decision to expand its partnership with ShipStation comes amid concern that the eCommerce and tech giant may have maxed out its growth potential in its home market with more than 750 million active users in China, as Gil Luria, director of research at D.A. Davidson, recently warned on CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia.”
“At ShipStation, we are committed to helping businesses efficiently and cost-effectively scale, nationally and internationally,” said Nathan Jones, CEO of ShipStation. “We are excited to work with a global leader like Alibaba.com to enable B2B eCommerce merchants to grow their businesses through cross-border and wholesale trading during such a lucrative time.”