Shenzhen is giving out money! Sellers can get up to 2 million

Platform sellers are being reaped crazily, and independent website sellers are going to take off? Things are far from that simple.

Platforms and independent websites are opposites. It seems that the worse the platform sellers are, the stronger the development momentum of independent websites is! For example, when Amazon sellers on the other side are still living in fear of being blocked, the independent websites on the other side are in a completely different situation:

From cross-border sellers setting up independent websites and achieving huge success, to Shopify's soaring financial report in the second quarter, to AliExpress's entry into independent websites, to independent website projects repeatedly receiving financing...all of these verify the saying that "independent websites are a great place to make money."

The news that the Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Commerce will subsidize independent station sellers up to 2 million yuan has once again made the "money-making halo" of independent stations shine even brighter. This news is expected to make a large number of sellers who are waiting to see whether to try independent stations make up their minds directly.

But, is it really that easy to build an independent website?

The maximum subsidy is 2 million! News of Shenzhen giving out money went viral on WeChat Moments

Before thinking about whether it is really that easy to build an independent website, let’s review the latest money-giving news in Shenzhen that has been all over the WeChat Moments in the past two days ( PS: Media colleagues have verified that this subsidy is real, and the editor has also found relevant information on the official website of the Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Commerce. Sellers don’t have to worry about the authenticity):

Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Commerce stated that Shenzhen encourages enterprises to conduct cross-border e-commerce through independent websites, and will provide 2 million yuan in funding for each project. The application conditions are as follows:

( 1) Registered in Shenzhen, has obtained relevant business qualifications, and has no serious violations of laws and regulations in the past five years;

(2) The independent website was launched before January 1, 2019, and its continuous operation is good and sustainable;

( 3) The average monthly sales of the independent website in the past year ( July 2020-June 2021) is more than US$300,000 (including US$300,000);

( 4) The applicant enterprise must directly or indirectly hold no less than 50% of the shares of the entity that owns the domain name of the independent website being applied for .

Against the backdrop of Amazon's frequent account bans, the independent site battlefield suddenly received good news, and the discussion among cross-border sellers was naturally heated:

There is still a lot of potential in independent websites. Friends in Shenzhen should go and learn about it.

The lifeblood of independent websites is in their own hands, unlike Amazon sellers who are at the mercy of the platform.

Only those who have set up an independent website know how difficult it is to set up an independent website, but it is very useful once you have established yourself.

Building an independent website is indeed a long and arduous journey. We must work hard on technology, products, and marketing.  

An independent website needs financial support. If it becomes famous, there will be income. If it fails, the initial investment will be wasted.

Summarizing the voices of sellers, we can find that some people applaud the development prospects of independent stations, while others say that independent stations "look dazzling on the surface but are actually more difficult to operate than platforms"... Everyone has an independent station in his or her heart, and many voices are also trying to restore the truest appearance of independent stations.

In fact, from the several conditions for applying for this subsidy set by the Shenzhen Municipal Bureau of Commerce, we can also get a glimpse of more of the inner workings of independent websites. Weibo blogger "Wo Niuniu Foreign Trade Notes" said that sellers who want to apply need to meet the conditions of "going online before January 1, 2019, and continuing to operate well", which requires that the independent website has been in operation for more than three years, so novices and newbies don't need to be jealous, as the operating investment for three years is at least in the millions .

Sellers must also meet the standard of "average monthly sales of more than 300,000 US dollars in the past year." That's 3.6 million US dollars a year, equivalent to more than 23 million RMB. This threshold is not set too high, and the top 10% of independent website companies should meet the standard.

Overall, the conditions are not complicated and you can apply for subsidies as long as you meet the conditions.

Weibo blogger "Wo Niuniu Foreign Trade Notes" also said that in order to get government subsidies, one of the most important points is to operate in compliance with regulations, pay the taxes that should be paid, and take on the social responsibilities that should be assumed. In addition, the overall difficulty and investment cost of operating an independent website are very high. For those who have not yet solved the problem of corporate survival, do not blindly follow the trend. You can first accumulate experience and wealth through the platform, and then slowly work on the independent website when you have the ability.

In addition, continuing to improve products and brands is the demand of the foreign trade environment and the trend of the future. Companies that follow the trend, speculate, and have no accumulation are not mainstream and will be gradually eliminated with the wave of competition. Those who continue to invest and accumulate for domestic products and brands to go overseas will eventually be rewarded.

Independent websites are gaining popularity again, and AliExpress is also making plans

Not only Shenzhen, as early as July 2, the General Office of the State Council issued an opinion on accelerating the development of new foreign trade formats and models. In the fourth point, Article 15, it was stated that foreign trade enterprises are encouraged to build independent websites and professional website building platforms are supported to optimize and improve their service capabilities. This is the first time that independent websites have appeared in a central-level document.

All of the above means that with the support of policies, it is bound to be a major trend for cross-border e-commerce sellers to establish independent websites.

The country's increased support for independent sites is inseparable from their obvious advantages overseas and broad market prospects.

Taking the North American market as an example , according to eMarketer's estimated data, small and medium-sized e-commerce independent sites with unique features have taken about 60% of the market's sales. With such a vast market, there is a lot of room for Chinese sellers to play.

From the beginning of the epidemic to Amazon's large-scale account blocking, the advantages of independent sites have continued to emerge. Not only have sellers made arrangements, but AliExpress, Alibaba's B2C cross-border e-commerce platform, has also taken action.

Previously, it was widely rumored in the industry that AliExpress was interested in developing its own independent website business, targeting SHEIN. At the same time, a widely circulated recruitment information revealed a lot of information.

According to the recruitment information, AliExpress is recruiting Shopify independent station operators in Hangzhou. One of the job responsibilities is to be responsible for the management of Shopify independent stations operated by TP. The job requirements clearly state that the candidate needs to have more than 2 years of experience in Shopify operation and promotion, and be familiar with Shopify rules and website building process.

Capital is always the most sensitive group in the market, and will make decisive bets once it discovers industry opportunities.

Two Hydrogen One Oxygen, founded by former DingTalk CEO Chen Hang, received strategic financing from Yuanjing Capital.

Cider, a D2C e-commerce platform founded by Wang Chen, the former COO of fashion rental company Yiersan, has completed a US$22 million Series A financing.

Quanliang Quansu, founded by Zhang Xiaopei, the former CTO of Chehaoduo, recently completed another $100 million in financing after receiving an angel round of investment of approximately $30 million last year.

…

These are just a microcosm of capital investment in independent stations, but they are enough to show their favor for the independent station track.

The best-selling independent website protects you from being blocked

In this Amazon ban, major sellers were the first to bear the brunt and suffered heavy losses. After Amazon's operation, many well-known sellers such as Patonson were also hit hard.

Recently, an investor asked Jihong Co., Ltd. a question on the investor interaction platform : Amazon is currently taking measures such as blocking accounts and freezing funds for false orders, fake transactions, and comments. Many cross-border e-commerce companies in China have been greatly affected. Has your company's cross-border e-commerce business been affected by this?

Jihong Co., Ltd. stated that the company mainly sells products through the model of accurately pushing goods on social media such as Facebook, Google, Line, Instagram, TikTok, etc., rather than opening stores on e-commerce platforms such as Amazon. Therefore, the company's cross-border e-commerce business has not been affected by Amazon's account suspension and fund freezing.

While other big sellers are struggling to cope with Amazon's ban on accounts, stores and brands, Jihong's independent website business has achieved gratifying results. In the first quarter of this year, Jihong achieved revenue of 1.178 billion yuan, of which the precision marketing cross-border e-commerce business (To C end) achieved revenue of 635 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of nearly 1.4 times; in the second quarter, the overall order scale of Jihong's cross-border e-commerce business increased significantly, and the highest number of orders exceeded 50,000 orders per day.

As Amazon intensifies its rectification efforts, sellers are avoiding independent sites. Website building platforms have obviously realized this and are now stepping up efforts to absorb sellers flowing from the platform to independent sites.

For example, in June Shopify announced that it would allow third-party merchants to retain all of their first $1 million in sales revenue in the App Store; for stores with annual sales of more than $1 million, the commission rate would be reduced from 20% to 15%.

Shopify