Avnet Expands E-commerce Strategy in China with Alibaba

PHOENIX and HANGZHOU, CHINA - September 25, 2019 - Leading global technology solutions provider Avnet (Nasdaq: AVT) has launched an Avnet Super Store on Alibaba Group's China-focused B2B purchasing and wholesale marketplace, 1688.com, through an alliance with Alibaba Group, one of the world's largest e-commerce companies. The companies announced the alliance, which brings together two established sources of technology innovation, on stage today during Alibaba's Apsara Conference in Hangzhou's Cloud Town. One of the first products offered through the new Chinese Super Store will be the Alibaba Cloud-enabled Raspberry Pi 3 Model B/B+ computer.

"Through our alliance with Alibaba Cloud, developers in China can accelerate their IoT prototyping on a familiar and versatile platform with built-in cloud connectivity," said Nishant Nishant, vice president of digital, Avnet. "By giving them easy access to feature-rich products that integrate hardware and cloud, plus experts in the Avnet ecosystem that can help them overcome the challenges of scaling to production, Chinese developers will be able to take their IoT solutions to market faster than before."

As China's largest wholesale platform for industrial products, 1688.com is home to more than 10 million enterprise storefronts, with 150 million users visiting the site per day. The site serves as a dedicated sourcing channel for wholesale buyers in China and has been expanding its cross-border wholesale business, including bringing foreign suppliers onto the platform. In August 2017, the platform introduced IMALL, short for "Industrial Mall," a dedicated marketplace for major industrial brands and their official distributors, now counting up to 3,000 international and domestic brands. By opening a Super Store on 1688.com, Avnet enhances its global e-commerce strategy and expands its online presence in China to serve customers specifically in the small and medium business (SMB) market.

By leveraging Alibaba Cloud's comprehensive suite of global cloud computing services, engineers and developers in China are able to use the most popular single board computers, like the Raspberry Pi 3 Model B/B+, to rapidly deploy real world applications across IoT, AI, industrial automation and predictive maintenance. Coupled with access to Avnet's portfolio of components and ecosystem of experts that help bring connected devices from concept to design to production, this Super Store demonstrates Avnet's commitment to reducing the complexity of IoT solutions for customers around the world.

"Alibaba Cloud is pleased to partner with Avnet and bring its products and solutions to China. With Avnet's extensive offerings, the two companies will be able to create a lot of synergies to propel the development of IoT solutions and build an ecosystem of experts together," said Ken Shen, president of global ecosystem, Alibaba Cloud Intelligence.

Attendees at the Apsara Conference will be able to learn more about Avnet's solutions and services at booth # c323 with live demos for innovators to see firsthand how they can quickly go from prototype to production. Users can also purchase the Alibaba Cloud-enabled Raspberry Pi 3 Model B/B+ for CNY248.41. For more information, visit https://avnet.1688.com/.