Detroit and Alibaba Combine Forces to Provide Jobs to the US

Jack Ma, CEO of Alibaba, is bringing his plan to increase jobs in the US to the Detroit Metro area this year. Ma recently announced he will be using Detroit as the base location for his upcoming summit, Gateway 17, which is said to give smaller companies, entrepreneurs, and farmers a chance to capitalize on the same global online opportunity that Alibaba—and other large online-only retailers—rely on.

Alibaba is taking big steps in helping to level the playing field for American entrepreneurs, small businesses, and farmers by giving them the opportunity to sell their products to the ever-growing Chinese consumer class through their virtual mall platform.

The Gateway 17 summit is said to give these smaller businesses a chance to better comprehend the domestic and international opportunities for profit through online e-commerce platforms. Alibaba believes that by providing these businesses the opportunity to sell their products through the use of B2C (business to consumer) and B2B2C (business to business to consumer) in the Chinese marketplace by using the Alibaba Tmall platform, it will increase their sales in the American e-commerce platforms, as well.

Large scale American retailers and manufacturers have been utilizing the Alibaba Tmall Global platform for years, with great success. In fact, during the annual Alibaba Global Shopping Festival this previous year, sellers from around the world were able to vend over $18 billion in just 24 hours.

The summit is based heavily on the concept of the “Taobao Village Phenomenon,” in which villages and towns in China saw ample growth in income and development when local farmers and businesses began utilizing online marketplaces to sell goods globally. After a meeting with President Trump, Jack Ma dedicated himself to help create over one million jobs in the US by helping the American small business population sell their products to the highly active Chinese consumer market. According to Ma, the Chinese marketplace is a tremendous opportunity to the American small businesses and farmers as the country recently surpassed the US as the world’s largest retail market with spending coming in at a surprising $4.84 trillion. Experts believe that the Chinese online spending will exceed the total of the combined world’s digital purchasing by next year.

Choosing Detroit as the kick off for the summit was no coincidence. Ma took note of the Detroit’s former history of innovation, recognizing its once-powerhouse status. With the efforts to rebuild and rebrand itself, Ma believed it was a fitting location for a summit designed to help small businesses start anew, rebranding themselves into global sales fronts, instead of local mom and pop shops.

Ma cites he will be in attendance at the summit, which will be held on June 20 and 21st. An expected audience of over 1,000 will hear speeches from Ma himself, as well as several other keynote speakers. Online streaming is anticipated to bring in an even larger audience. Category breakout talks, business solutions sessions, and marketplace networking opportunities will also be available for on-site attendees.

News Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaelzakkour/2017/04/25/alibaba-takes-first-step-to-fulfilling-jack-ma-and-president-trumps-one-million-u-s-jobs-promise/