Alibaba launches new e-commerce platform in Russia

The service has started working in test mode and should become fully operational from mid-October.

In Russia, Tmall will be launched within the AliExpress platform. In fact, this marks the brands debut outside China, one of the sources said.

According to the people familiar with the matter, Tmall will operate in Russia as a separate online shop and a marketplace (or e-platform), uniting an unlimited number of sellers.

Goods will be delivered from the warehouses of Alibabas partners in Russia, and not from Chinese storage facilities (cross-border trade), as with AliExpress.

Tmall will offer all kinds of goods, ranging from electronics and household appliances to clothing and childrens goods. Russian and international brands, as well as some favorite Chinese brands in Russia, will be available to customers, said the Director of Development of AliExpress in Russia

In 2015, Russia and China started an online e-commerce platform called TradeEase aimed at increasing cross-border trade between the two countries.