Exclusive Interview With Zhang Qi: Co Founder Of Tradewise Solution Company

Zhang Qi, co-founder of Tradewise Solution

With the passage of time, the import cross-border electricity supplier industry has slowly unveiled the mysterious veil. Domestic shopping websites and APP are springing up, so far this year, 6 or 7 cross-border electricity providers have been favored by venture capitalists, of which the largest financing has reached 30 million dollars. What are the companies behind these cross-border electricity suppliers? Where do they come from? How do they manage the supply chain?

To this end, the reporter interviewed Zhang Qi, co-founder of Tradewise Solution.

Reporter: please introduce yourself briefly. You look very mysterious.

Zhang Qi: Hello, everyone. Zhang Qi - Tradewise Solution The co-founder called me Aaron, I might be a little better. I have been in the UK for ten years, and from the very beginning of ordinary foreign students to the management of nearly 100 companies, the change is quite big. When I first came to study in England, I began to try to do some business, took over the plane, sold insurance, and became a Witkey website. Later, some domestic friends asked me about the British property market. I began to study British real estate and set up my first company to help Chinese Chinese invest in British real estate. But in general, because I was lack of management experience at that time, I didn't know how to use the team, so I sold it to a local real estate consultancy company.

Reporter: I heard that your company did the first thing. International Logistics And express, what makes you choose this industry? I feel that you need huge capital investment in the early stage of logistics, so you were so confident?

Zhang Qi: it was the first time that more and more people around the world started buying business. I think this is an opportunity, and happiness comes too suddenly. Gradually, we have developed many business customers to help more and more foreign businesses support direct mail China and support RMB payment.

Actually, I always think we are a Internet Co. Our logistics website API system has been linked to major international logistics companies, express companies in the UK, and domestic customs, thus forming a fully automated cross border express delivery network from door-to-door to door-to-door delivery. Customers can choose different lines and different services. So our biggest investment is IT, as for manual labor, let foreigners do it. Our automatic order system has also changed the express delivery market from England to China, which has taken up more than a half of the market share in the UK.

The third question has to be said that I was lucky enough to find several partners with great skills when I started courier. At this time, I really realized the importance of a good team. My confidence comes from our team. Now our team has negotiators with venture capitalists, a former Microsoft engineer, a top student from Cambridge and imperial Polytechnic, and a business wizard who has successfully started many projects. A few months ago, the former vice president of Alibaba Europe joined our company.

Reporter: what do you think will be the future direction and challenges of China's import of cross-border electricity suppliers?

Zhang Qi: I think we should first consider the issue from the macro environment. After all, it is a new industry. I think there is no doubt that the policy is in the right direction. Whether it is the three single unification or the establishment of cross border pilot cities and import bonded warehouses, they all attach importance to the above. When an industry is formed, it needs to formulate rules and regulations, industry standards and guide its healthy and long-term development according to the characteristics of the industry.

Considering the business model, I read an article before it was called "import cross-border electricity supplier analysis", in which the import cross-border electricity suppliers were classified in more detail. I think each model has its advantages and disadvantages, and there is also room for its existence. I would like to say one by one according to the classification of the article.

First of all, with the improvement of the cultural level and quality of the Chinese people and the trend of younger users, the demand ratio of plug-ins will probably not increase again. However, as the number of overseas shopping users is increasing rapidly, and the operation cost of such applications is low, there is still a certain market value.

Next is the consultation shopping guide class, the social will never be out of date, the domestic consumer has also formed the reference and the contrast custom, as long as the cross boundary shopping market is good, these kind of company certainly has the development, has accumulated certain user quantity later to have the better way out.

As for the one-stop shopping, I am not optimistic about the model, the disadvantages are too obvious, will slowly transform. The import cost of platform type importer is too high and the cost of marketing is higher. Although e-commerce giants have started cross-border retail business, but investment has always been a problem. If the recruitment is ordinary purchasing, the quality of service will not go, the price will not go down, as time passes, it will also smash its own signboard. Self employment is a relatively good model for me. In foreign countries, it is actually the era of vertical electricity suppliers, and consumers are not concentrating on online shopping. The start-up cost of self run classes is also relatively high. I think entrepreneurs can start from the C store. No matter whether they are sold on the platform or through other channels, the key is to have brand awareness and become independent after being bigger and stronger.

In addition, there is a huge group of overseas purchasing agents. Low gross margins, no need to suppress cargo, but with the regular cross-border electricity suppliers to control the source of strength increased, purchasing agents will gradually lose the price and service advantages. But I don't think purchasing is going to die. He has two foothold. One is acquaintance's trust, the other two is to buy products that can't be bought online, such as Hermes Birkin.

The difference between cross-border electricity providers and domestic electricity providers lies in the word "cross border". There are several main features of cross-border import electricity suppliers: products are products originating abroad, the mode of transport is international logistics and express delivery or bonded warehouses, payment may require cross-border payment, and consumers may have to pay taxes. The policy standardizes the domestic import of cross-border electricity providers, making online online shopping more transparent, because goods are all recorded at customs, consumers must buy genuine goods, and customs can also raise taxes. But for overseas electricity suppliers and individual purchasing can not be restricted.

Foreign electricity providers can not apply the new import electricity supplier policy, because their orders, logistics lists and payment information can not be transmitted to customs unless they come to China Customs to record companies and products one by one, and access to customs designated payment channels (a treasure and a certain treasure), while customers must be completed through this payment method. For personal purchase, customs will not accept personal record, and the market will not be regulated. Fake purchasing and fake products are too rampant, and consumers dare not buy foreign goods online because they are afraid of buying fake goods. So I think the challenge of the whole cross-border import business is mainly due to the applicability of the policy and the source of goods.

Reporter: what part of Tradewise Solution's business is in the entire import cross-border electricity supplier? Now there are more American Amoy, and what good products are there in the UK?

Zhang Qi: just mentioned the source of the industry challenge, and our main business now is to serve the branding and electricity suppliers in the UK, help them enter the Chinese market and find more channels. The two is to serve the retailers outside the UK and provide them with good products, so we are the bridge between local products and cross-border electricity suppliers. Many foreign brands want to enter the Chinese market. The volume of China's "double 11" is a surprise to them. But because they have a bad impression of Chinese business, they dare not act hastily. They only dare to find reputable companies. Our English bridge is mainly displayed through a product library. The A terminal is a British brand and business, and the B terminal is a domestic retail business. A upload product information, B side extract data, through API, CSV or manual order.

There are two kinds of transaction modes: 1.Back to back order (back-to-back order), which is characterized by retailers not having to press goods and zero inventory pressure, but actually having all the stock in our product library. The mature electricity supplier and product library carry out API docking. After receiving the order, the data is transmitted to the product library. Our British warehouse will receive instructions on that day. In addition, small and medium-sized sellers can also upload or manually operate CSV, online order, convenient and fast. We are responsible for this order from packaging, international express, customs clearance, door-to-door supply chain as a whole. 2.Bulk buying (bulk purchase), retailers can ask us to deliver the goods to the designated airport or bonded warehouse, but we need to bear the inventory pressure ourselves.

Britain actually has many good products, but it has not been well known to domestic consumers. In fact, we can see the overall trend. British explosive products have appeared frequently in the past two years, and the British Sea scouring has gradually become popular. We have a special post called "product up to people". They are mainly responsible for finding and analyzing brands or products that have already been hot or potential, and tell the brand negotiation department what they consider worthy of introduction. The latter finds the brand for business cooperation.