Cainiao Network, (Cainiao), the logistics arm of the Alibaba Group, announced its three-year development plan for Brazil which includes sorting centers and smart lockers.
To date, Cainiao's local express delivery network spans over 1,000 Brazilian cities with customers in Sao Paulo and other core cities able to receive local parcels delivered by Cainiao as fast as in one day.
Cainiao has earlier launched its first smart distribution centre in Brazil which together with the sorting centres in Mexico and Chile, will form an extensive parcel network in LatAm.
According to the three-year roadmap, Cainiao plans to launch another nine distribution centres in seven states.
Air, sea routes to Brazil planned
In addition to that, 1,000 smart lockers will also be set up across ten key cities in Brazil to serve as public facilities for intra-city and cross-border deliveries, local express as well as food delivery services.
"To enhance line haul stability and provide further support to Brazilian merchants, Cainiao plans to launch Brazil-China air and sea routes. This is concluded after rounds of discussions and training with over 200 local Brazilian merchants looking to tap into the Chinese market," Cainiao said.
Currently, Cainiao is operating eight weekly chartered flights between China and Brazil, which will leverage Cainiao's cross-border logistics to facilitate the export of Brazil's homegrown coffee, nuts and propolis fueled by the booming bilateral e-commerce trade.
Cainiao noted that Brazil is the 15th largest market for e-commerce with a revenue of US$26.1 billion in 2021[.
According to the 2021 eEbit Webshoppers report, e-commerce in Brazil grew by 31% in the first half of 2021 and in 2020 alone, the number of online consumers increased by more than 40% due to the pandemic and changing consumer preferences.
"Brazil-China trade has been growing and increasingly connecting the two countries, with benefits for both sides. Cainiao has become an important partner in facilitating bilateral e-commerce flows," said Augusto Souto Pestana, president of Apex-Brasil (Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency).
"Through the partnership with Cainiao, more Brazilian brands will be able to capitalize on the extraordinary opportunities in the Chinese consumer market."
E-commerce expansion in Brazil
James Liu, general manager of Cainiao's exports logistics, noted the company's plan to continue to enhance its logistics services and efficiency to meet the booming demand for e-commerce in China and Brazil.
"We look forward to bringing more cutting-edge smart logistics technologies and superior local express services to serve Brazilian merchants and consumers better," Liu said.
Cainiao operates over 240 chartered flies every month, 6 eHubs, 15 sorting centres and over 100 warehouses across the globe.
As the major logistics supplier for AliExpress, Lazada and Tmall, Cainiao's daily average cross-border and international package volume exceeded 4.5 million.