Kaola

Kaola is an e-commerce selling imported products from various regions of the world to users based from China. In operations since 2015, the company is a subsidiary of NetEase, a Chinese technology conglomerate operating in the online gaming, email and advertising services, and e-commerce industries. Kaola was acquired by Alibaba in September 2019 for $2 billion, and its services will be merged with Tmall, Alibaba’s e-commerce operating in the same field. The company is currently headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan.

Kaola is known to focus on selling popular brands from Japan, United States, Australia, and South Korea, although as of 2018, it also offers products from 50 countries worldwide. Kaola offers products in multiple categories, ranging from fashion to baby products. Kaola targets users who are interested in purchasing high-end products. Kaola’s products are intended for personal use, and thus it does not offer wholesale prices. Kaola is able to send product from overseas sellers within 1 to 3 days by leveraging warehouses in free-trade zones. Prior to its acquisition, in comparison to its competitors, Kaola had a 24.5% market share in the cross-border e-commerce industry.