DHL ecommerce has announced on July 21 the launch of a new DHL e-commerce Shanghai Terminal located in Jiuting, as well as plans to launch additional drop off centres in North and South China by end of 2015.

The company unveiled its e-commerce plans at a press briefing in China which coincided with FC Bayern Munich’s Audi Summer Tour currently taking place in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.

The new Shanghai Terminal is a dedicated facility for DHL ecommerce which the company hopes will “tap on the burgeoning e-commerce sector in China”. The facility functions as the central point of consolidation of e-commerce goods from China for global distribution.

The company already operates its own centre out of Hong Kong, but believes that establishing a base in Shanghai will help reduce transit time by up to three days for manufacturers, particularly in eastern and northern China.

“We’re excited by China’s e-commerce sector where the trade volume in the first five months of 2015 was already equal to the whole of 20141,” said Thomas Kipp, CEO, DHL ecommerce.

“With about 95% of outbound logistics volume expected to come from nine provinces, we will continue to invest to grow our footprint in China and support the rising market demand.

“By the end of the year, the Shanghai Terminal will be complemented by a network of drop-off centres in North and South China.

“These centres will help provide regional consolidation of the large volumes, aggregating the shipments before they move to the Shanghai Terminal for final distribution around the world.”

As previously reported, FC Bayern Munich launched its online flagship store on Alibaba’s Tmall Global platform in May.  The store offers a range of the team’s merchandise, including the 2015/16 home jersey, ready to be shipped by DHL eCommerce to fans in China.

“The FC Bayern Munich online store was launched to provide our 90 million local Chinese fan base a means to access the same, quality merchandising worn by their favourite international soccer stars,” said Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, Executive Board Chairman of FC Bayern Munich.

“Since the grand opening in May, we’ve seen more than 7,100 online purchases on our new web shop and expect our Audi Summer Tour in China will expand our touch points with our Chinese fan base even further.”

DHL added that its strategic partnership with FC Bayern Munich, Germany’s most successful football team, has provided the company with “a key platform to showcase and grow its capabilities in the e-commerce sector”.