By CHENG Lu

Customers in Hangzhou who place orders on Tmall Mart before noon are guaranteed to receive their packages before dusk, according to Alibaba.

China’s e-commerce superpower claims to be optimizing logistics in the city where it is headquartered. If all goes according to plan, Tmall Mart aims to have same day delivery in more than 20 major Chinese cities before the end of this year.

Alibaba’s logistics arm Cainiao is already a powerhouse of speedy package delivery, promising to deliver within 24 hours in China and 72 hours anywhere on the planet. The logistics company has joined with over 500 logistics partners globally and has 15 sorting centers around the world.

The company already owns 600,000 square meters of warehousing in Hangzhou and more than 150 mini warehouses across the city. Well over 2,000 vehicles ensure on-time delivery.  

Last week, Alibaba revealed that it would split its US$220 billion empire into six business units – Cainiao, cloud, digital media and entertainment, global e-commerce, local services, and Taobao-Tmall.

Just two days after the news of the restructuring, Cainiao – now an independent unit – was reportedly seeking an IPO in Hong Kong and expecting to go public as soon as the end of this year.

On April 3, Cainiao announced an agreement with Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport to build its first national air cargo center.

Cainiao’s revenue in 2022 grew 17 percent to 23 billion yuan.