Ep. 127: Selling imported ice cream online during COVID-19 with Bjorn van der Veen

China Business Cast

About Bjorn van der Veen:

Originally from the Netherlands, Bjorn is an experienced Digital Marketing and e-commerce professional who has been living in China for 15 years. He has worked in Online and Digital Marketing for 12 years and is a trusted Tmall Partner.

In 2015, he launched Arctic Solutions, a full-service e-commerce solutions provider, that focuses on temperature-controlled products for the Chinese market.

Ranging from -21 to 21 degrees, Arctic Solutions covers everything from logistics, customs clearance, temperature controlled warehousing, last mile delivery, customer service, cross border payments, technical solutions and marketing.

Episode Content:

Recently we hear food exporters started worrying that the Chinese consumers are afraid of buying imported foods, especially frozen, because of the severe COVID-19 outbreaks associated with the facilities where imported foods were stored and handled. We wanted to know what are the actual impacts of COVID-19 in the food sector and what can be done to improve the cold-chain management during the pandemic.

We cover all kinds of things around e-commerce and cold-chain, but in short, it comes down to the following:

• Market demand for immune-boosting and authentic imported products
• Practical process to evaluate your potential in China
• The need to be agile and flexible when launching new products
• Importance of online reviews and keeping good reputation
• New strategies to build trust in your brand during COVID-19
• Different customer expectations in e-commerce and offline stores
• 4 types of digital influencers: KOL, KOC, KOS and KOF
• The value of having local partners for China Market Entry
• D2C cold-chain hurdles and the importance of nationwide warehouse coverage
• Seasonal and regional differences in China

Episode Mentions:

• Reach out to Bjorn on LinkedIn or reach out via [e-mail]
• Website: http://www.arcticsolutions.cn
• Iceberry - https://iceberrychina.cn/
• Iceberry Tmall Store: https://auc6eppu.tmall.com/
• Find your host Lina on LinkedIN or reach out via [e-mail]
• Website: https://litaogroup.com
• Join China Business Cast WeChat group