Alibaba to help Bigcommerce clients tap China supplier network

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd has forged a deal to allow online shopping startup Bigcommerce's 70,000-plus clients to more easily buy from top-ranked Chinese suppliers and manufacturers on Alibaba.com.

The tie-up helps round off Bigcommerce's services, a startup which helps clients from Gibson Guitars to Ubisoft Entertainment SA create and market e-commerce websites.

The Chinese company and Bigcommerce have created a software app to help Bigcommerce's customers better navigate Alibaba.com, the companies said in a statement on Wednesday.

Alibaba.com is the Chinese ecommerce giant's original product, a service through which millions of merchants around the world source cheap parts, components and products from Chinese suppliers.

It caters primarily to smaller businesses looking for manufacturing partners in China and elsewhere but often lack the financial resources to secure reliable suppliers on their own.

Clients of six-year-old Bigcommerce, which counts Softbank Capital, American Express Co and General Catalyst among its investors, will start out with access to 300 "gold suppliers" on Alibaba's service.

That partnership may eventually extend to thousands more suppliers, and Bigcommerce's customers will also have the option of selling their products to Alibaba.com users.

"For many of our merchants, Alibaba.com represents a tremendous opportunity to tap into the world's largest supplier network - whether to start selling or expand an existing business - without taking on unnecessary risk or sacrificing margins," Bigcommerce co-founder and CEO Eddie Machaalani said in a statement.