Until a few years ago, buying from China through e-commerce platforms was contraindicated for the anxious. It required patience and some luck. The wait to receive the product lasted two to four months and there was still a risk of the order getting stuck at customs or even being stopped and returned to the country of origin.
In the last two years, however, the life of the online import consumer has changed a lot. If you think that your purchases at Sheinalready Shopeealready Aliexpress or in Ago They have arrived much faster, it’s not just printing. The average delivery time has even dropped. Some purchases already reach the buyer’s hands overnight. And those that take longer are sent within three weeks.
And it’s not just Asian companies: some large Brazilian companies, such as Magalu, are taking advantage of this Chinese wave through partnerships.
But what happened to have such a radical transformation in the shopping experience on these platforms? There was a true logistics revolution.
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The platforms have doubled both sea and air shipments to the country in the last two years. And the forecast is that the number of flights with goods will triple again by 2026. Furthermore, with greater frequency, the cost of freight has decreased.
Today, practically one plane takes off from China every business day with goods for Brazil. On average, there are already four weekly flights, which bring around 400 tons of products, says Marcio Chaer, logistics director at Magalu and the group’s logistics company, Magalog. “Cross-border (cross-border trade) is an increasing reality.”
Asian sites are also putting both feet into the national market. Some platforms, such as the Chinese Shein and Shopee, from Singapore, have opened local operations. Companies have implemented their own logistics structures with warehouse networks and delivery services in Brazil.
“Logistics is no longer a commodity but has become a competitive differentiator”, says Cesar Borges, director of this area at Shein for South America. Based on this perception, the Chinese retailer has made it a priority in Brazil to build an infrastructure capable of absorbing any growth in local shopping activity.
Sites are in a hurry for this expansion. Shein and Shopee were the e-commerce companies that most increased logistics space rentals in Brazil in the last two years, according to real estate consultancy Binswanger. The area occupied by platforms already accounts for 13% of all e-commerce warehouses in the country.
This participation is already starting to resemble that shown by Brazilian online retail giants. Americanas and Casas Bahia, for example, together account for 20% of product storage areas in the national market.
How to deliver faster? Have stocks in Brazil
Brazilian Taynan Aoyama has been following this transformation closely. The foreign trade specialist moved to China just over a year ago to work on expanding the cross-border operating model. This is precisely the development of the necessary infrastructure to speed up the shipping of goods from China to other countries.
Aoyama worked at AliExpress and is currently part of the MailAmericas cross-border logistics group. “Today, the shipping of most Chinese products is no longer direct.” Within the cross-border strategy, high demand items, such as electronics and clothing, are now stocked in Brazil.
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It is no coincidence that Shopee increased the space rented in warehouses to store goods up to 30 kilometers from the city of São Paulo by 25.3% this year alone. Shein, in turn, has three warehouses totaling 256 thousand m2 in the Guarulhos airport area, in São Paulo. This expansion is part of the strategy known as “last mile”.
Maintaining stocks close to large consumer centers makes it possible to make deliveries in shorter periods of time, for example, in one or two days. Shein has even used artificial intelligence and data analysis to predict increased demand for certain products and increase or reduce stocks. “Deliveries have become increasingly faster with these tools”, says Borges, director of the Chinese retailer.
If you can’t deal with them…
The most recent partnership between Chinese and Brazilian groups came to light in early November. THE Magazine Luiza (Magalu) and AliExpress, from the Alibaba group, closed a commercial agreement. It will be a two-way street: products from China are now offered on the Brazilian platform and items from here are sold on the Chinese app aimed at the local market.
The partnership can evolve. Magalu is in talks with AliExpress to also provide storage and delivery services. “This is our next objective after consolidating the cross-border operation,” says Chaer.
Collaborations with Brazilian manufacturers have been another strategy adopted by platforms both to increase sales and improve the shopping experience for consumers. Shopee and Shein are prime examples. Online retailers have become mixed marketplaces, that is, virtual storefronts that offer both Asian products and products from local suppliers.
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Shein, specializing in clothing, opened its Brazilian operation in April 2023. Since then, it has registered 25,000 Brazilian sellers on the platform, which account for 55% of local business. The online retailer declared its goal of achieving an 85% share of sales originating from national companies by 2026.
Shopee has already traveled this same road. The Singapore app, operating in the country since 2020, already has more than 3 million registered Brazilian sellers, including micro, small, medium and large companies. And more than 85% of sales on the marketplace already come from local stores.
The youngest of the Chinese companies, Temu, debuted its application aimed at Brazil in June this year. In just a few months, it has already reached 25 million users and is starting to disrupt traditional marketplaces. For now, it has no representation in the country, but, given the accelerated advancement, the tendency will be to follow the path of its more experienced rivals.
Growing market share
The strategy has paid off. In addition to protecting against possible scenarios of greater restriction on imports, sales by Asian retailers are growing at a rapid pace.
Shein’s revenue in Brazil more than doubled in 2023 compared to a year earlier to R$15 billion, according to calculations by BTG Pactual analysts. Shopee recorded revenues of R$20 billion in the same period in local sales.
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Asian companies already account for a 15.4% market share in Brazilian online retail. Shopee occupies the top of the list of eastern platforms, with 9.2%, according to a survey by consultancy Conversion. In second comes AliExpress with 3.3% and then Shein, which has a share of 2.9% of the total.
Among the top 10 e-commerce sites, Free Market appears first, with a share of 14.5%. Shopee appears in second place ahead of Amazon, in third place, which has a 7.8% market share.
Faster release of imports
The government also gave a little help in this logistical transformation. The creation of Remessa Compliance, a program with different rules for importing products up to US$50, brought more speed to customs processes. International platforms that join the initiative begin to charge taxes at the time of sale. Rates range from 20% for import tax to 17% for state ICMS.
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The standard import tax rate is much higher, at 60%, not counting ICMS, and is still valid for purchases over US$50 or those made on unregistered websites. In this case, the customs analysis also takes much longer, because the Federal Revenue department responsible for inspection needs to analyze the import conditions, check for inaccuracies or lack of data, decide on the collection of taxes, possible fines and whether or not to release the purchase. .
The possibility of quick release opened by Remessa Como led Shein to invest R$13 million in a new space at Guarulhos airport. The online clothing retailer will process up to 100,000 packages daily when the facility is at full capacity. As a result, shipping of products will be reduced by up to five days.
“Remessa Compliance was a game changer for cross-border”, explains Chaer, from Magalu. In addition to customs simplification, deliveries accelerated due to the opening of the logistics market. Until last year, shipments were made only via the Post Office.
With the release, several independent operators entered the game. Many, like Magalog, offer “last mile” warehouses close to the biggest markets, such as São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Belo Horizonte. Good for consumers and better for the most anxious, who will be able to keep their nails intact.
