China's e-commerce boom brings shopping revolution (5)

CHINA'S E-COMMERCE GOING OVERSEAS

In addition to setting the shopping trend domestically, China's e-commerce companies are also tapping the potential of overseas markets where it can be difficult and expensive to buy Chinese products.

Last month, Alibaba and supermarket chain 7-Eleven forged a new partnership which will see 900 7-Eleven stores in Hong Kong sell Alipay vouchers. Available in denominations between 100 yuan (15 U.S. dollars) and 1,000 yuan (159 U.S. dollars), the coupons allow Hong Kong consumers to purchase items on the Tmall site without a mainland bank account.

"The practice opens up a very lucrative market to Tmall through placing its vouchers in the Hong Kong market. It could be an inexpensive way to boost brand recognition in new markets," according to Daphne Lee, director of Taobao's overseas business.

She says that Taobao has attracted 1.2 million registered users in Hong Kong and half a million users in Taiwan so far. Women's fashion, women's shoes and gadgets are the most popular categories for users from Hong Kong and Taiwan.