The numbers are in! A recently launched cross-sale program fast-tracking PayPal merchants with a small presence on eBay has successfully supported 35 PayPal merchants to build sales on the site. And, based on this success, there are already plans in the works to sign up another 200 China PayPal merchants on eBay this year.
“eBay and PayPal are the key enablers for Chinese sellers to reach global consumers directly,” said John Lin, vice president, eBay Greater China Cross Border Trade (CBT). “With our teams working closely together, we have created greater value for our company and for our sellers.”
“PayPal merchants have been very receptive to being introduced to eBay; they see almost immediate benefits from our joint efforts,” said Patrick Foo, general manager of CBT, PayPal China. “We believe there are even greater opportunities to grow our retail export business together in China in the future.”
As for the newly onboarded companies, they are clear about how cross-sale has benefited their businesses. Here’s what one of them says.
Expanding a Fledgling Export Business
PayPal merchant Touji, a beauty equipment company, transitioned to eBay through the cross-sale program in 2012 because its founder, Steven Zhang, knew that eBay was the best channel to expand his fledgling export business.
“Large-sized beauty equipment, such as salon style skin rejuvenators and hair removal machines, are non-mainstream products with few Chinese sellers on eBay,” he says. “I realized that moving to the online marketplace would give me a competitive edge over other retailers.”
Zhang had an established warehouse in Spain but it was underutilized, acting mainly as a storage facility for his European-destined goods. He was also aware that he needed to broaden his customer base.
With the help of cross-sale, Zhang worked closely with eBay to list the company’s merchandise on the Spanish eBay site (ebay.es). This attracted more buyers and changed the use of his warehouse from transfer station to an overseas branch of the business, including logistics/return management, and product maintenance. Zhang also created an additional three eBay accounts and set up a new warehouse in the U.S. to speed up delivery and expand sales to the region.
The changes worked: Three months later, the company’s growth rate had surpassed expectations, reaching 800 percent. The eBay arm of the business now accounts for more than 30 percent of overall trade.
Visit Touji’s eBay store: http://stores.ebay.com/tuoji01