The logistics arm of Alibaba Group, Cainiao Network has entered a partnership with Grocery Logistics of Singapore (GLS), which is an entity of the Fairprice Group supply chain business unit to strengthen its logistics services in the market, according to media reports.
The partnership will have two-phase rollouts where it will provide a full-suite local logistics service from customs clearance to last-mile delivery for orders placed on bulky items along with expanding beyond the Alibaba e-commerce ecosystem to support more merchants with their logistics needs.
This partnership will also see Cainiao leveraging GLS’ logistics capabilities and resources, including customs fulfilment service and doorstep delivery service. In turn, this will help increase the daily parcel handling capacity in Singapore to 42 tons or approximately 600 bulky items. This partnership will also help customers receive their parcels within two working days after customs clearance.
Chris Fan, head of cross-border, Singapore of Cainiao Network told the media, “Taobao and Tmall have been growing in popularity among consumers in Singapore given the variety of products they offer. We anticipate this demand will continue to grow, especially in the lead-up to Alibaba’s annual 11.11 shopping festival.”
Toh Hui Leng, chief operating officer of supply chain business of FairPrice Group mentioned that GLS has a digitised logistics ecosystem that utilises the latest supply chain technology and data analytics to meet the demands of e-commerce. The partnership with Cainiao Network will bring about better cost-efficiency, productivity and enhanced capabilities especially for last-mile delivery of bulky items – a logistical challenge for online platforms.”