DHGATE Group's Entrepreneur Empowerment Initiatives Commended by World Internet Conference in Cross-Border E-Commerce Report

The World Internet Conference's newly released 2024 report highlights how DHGATE Group empowers Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and female e-commerce entrepreneurs through training initiatives and digital upskilling.

BEIJING, May 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- DHGATE Group, the global leading B2B cross-border e-commerce marketplace, was showcased by the World Internet Conference (WIC) as an important case study in the organization's newly released "World Internet Conference - Collection of Cross-Border E-Commerce Practice Cases" report.

The report was officially presented by the WIC at the Digital Silk Road Development Forum on April 16th, 2024, in Xi'an, China. DHGATE Group, in particular, was selected as a representative of superior talent cultivation and digital empowerment, owing to APEC Women Connect and its "Her Power" Entrepreneurship Competition entrepreneur support programs that DHGATE Group's Founder, Chairperson and CEO, Diane Wang has led over the past eight years.

DHGATE Group's Impact in Digital Empowerment

Diane, who is also the China representative of the APEC Business Advisory Council and founder of APEC Women Connect, initiated an e-commerce training and support program for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) called the "APEC Cross-border E-commerce Capacity Building Project" (APEC CBET) in 2013. The CBET program has since provided services to nearly 10,000 SMEs, business association representatives and policymakers across more than 50 countries, including more than 20 APEC and European economies. Meanwhile, APEC Women Connect has also achieved significant milestones: the program has successfully trained over 100,000 women micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), nurturing thousands offemale entrepreneurs.

APEC Women Connect's flagship event is the APEC Women Connect "Her Power" Entrepreneurship Competition, which has been held annually four times since 2020. The event has attracted global female entrepreneurs to share valuable stories about personal challenges in social commerce entrepreneurship, transformation, and development.

The "Her Power" competition encourages mutual learning, constructs an equal and gender-friendly environment for female entrepreneurship, helps female MSME founders improve their digital capabilities, and boosts women's worldwide participation in entrepreneurial activities and role in driving economic growth. To date, more than 5,000 female e-commerce entrepreneurs from around the world have participated in the "Her Power" competition, which has offered over 2,000 hours of digital skills training.

DHGATE Group expanded the competition to introduce a stronger competition focus, innovated the competition's training model, and incorporated AI and live broadcasts — all to further empower female e-commerce entrepreneurs.

In 2023, the "Her Power" competition added e-learning courses that cater to Gen Z, with an exclusive YouTube learning platform and training courses created by event partners. Topics covered include cross-border e-commerce, cross-border payments, brand marketing, and live broadcast promotions.

The competition partners with The Inner Mountain Foundation, an initiative started by Diane Wang to foster a community of like-minded women who can lead, nurture, and inspire those around them — starting with themselves — by providing access to various entrepreneurial resources, mentorship, training, information, support, recognition, and even funding for women-owned businesses. The Foundation offers professional courses and employs various media forms such as videos, live broadcasts, and podcasts to teach both hard and soft skills to aspiring female entrepreneurs.

"Her Power" participants have reported great gains, especially from the event's partnerships and collaborations with industry-leading companies to bring advanced technology sharing and cutting-edge blueprint prospects.

"Digital empowerment goes a long way toward fostering business success for women, while also contributing to their inner growth and spiritual enrichment through personal exploration," Diane said. "I strongly believe that being successful is not just about material gain — it's also about internal empowerment, which is the most important kind."

Connecting the Digital Silk Road Through Entrepreneur Services

Guests from nearly 50 countries and regions around the world attended the Digital Silk Road Development Forum, during which they also discussed the digital economy's development trends and opportunities.

The WIC report that DHgate was included in comprises 63 case studies that highlight the best practices in China's cross-border e-commerce industry led by relevant global organizations. In addition to DHGATE Group, other leading Chinese cross-border e-commerce companies selected for their outstanding achievements in different links of the industrial chain included Alibaba.com, Taotian Group, Ant Group and SHEIN.

A WIC representative said that, in January 2024, the conference started collecting case studies about practices and experiences in cross-border e-commerce from relevant government departments, industry organizations, international organizations, and enterprises in all links of the cross-border e-commerce industry chain. These case studies were then organized into nine categories, including: brand cultivation, platform construction, comprehensive services, government coordination, industrial upgrading, logistics optimization, technical support, financial empowerment, and digital empowerment.

"We are very proud to have been chosen by the WIC for our commitment to talent cultivation," Founder, Chairperson, and CEO of DHGATE Group Diane Wang said. "We have put in a lot of effort and energy into cultivating digital empowerment especially among female founders of MSMEs, who represent an important and growing part of the global economy."

About APEC Women Connect
Founded in 2016, APEC Women Connect is an APEC-endorsed program initiated by Ms. Diane Wang, the China Representative on the APEC Business Advisory Council, Chair of the APEC Women Leadership Forum, Co-Chair of WiBAC of B20 Indonesia, and Founder, Chairperson and CEO of DHgate.com. APEC Women Connect aims to empower women, especially young women, to realize entrepreneurship via digital solutions through inspirational sharing, practical learning, effective recognition, and awards. APEC Women Connect has been included in the annual recommendation to the APEC Economic Leaders for three consecutive years. It has also been included in the annual recommendation to G20 Leaders by B20 for two consecutive years.

About DHgate
Founded in 2004, DHgate has become the leading B2B cross-border e-commerce marketplace in China, boasting over 34 million live listings annually. Through their global operations and offices, including in the USA and UK, DHgate reaches millions of people with trusted products and services. As of December 31, 2022, DHgate served more than 59.6 million registered buyers from 225 countries and regions, connecting them to over 2.54 million sellers in China and other countries.

For more information, please visit DHgate.com and follow @DHgate.com.

SOURCE DHGATE Group