Women Entrepreneurs Take Their Businesses Global with Alibaba

American, women-owned small businesses, like Adirondack Flavor & Fragrance Farm, Antica Farmacista, and Timeless Skincare, are helping to drive billions of dollars in annual SMB global sales on Alibaba’s online marketplace. In 2022, American small businesses accounted for nearly 14% of sales by U.S. brands on Alibaba platforms, reaching a total of $6.7 billion, according to NDP Analytics.

In 2019, Seattle-based Antica Farmacista’s co-founders, Susanne Pruitt and Shelley Callaghan, sought the support of Alibaba to expand their luxury home fragrance business in China. With a customer base of over one billion Chinese shoppers, Pruitt and Callaghan viewed Alibaba as a key partner that could help take their brand global. As a result, sales of Antica’s home fragrance products in China have taken off, and Pruitt and Callaghan view Alibaba as essential to their future.

Timeless Skincare, based in Houston, Texas, has also achieved burgeoning growth in China. “The success we’ve had partnering with Alibaba has been phenomenal,” said Veronica Pedersen, CEO. “Our partnership with Alibaba and the success we’ve seen in China has helped us hire more employees and open a new manufacturing facility.”

“When we try to grow our business, the first thing I think for the China market is Alibaba,” said Adirondack CEO Yen Maine. The family-owned business, based in Potsdam, New York, has been designing and crafting fragrance products for over 40 years. To grow their business further, the brand is partnering with Alibaba to expand in China.

These women-owned businesses are among the thousands of American brands growing their businesses globally on Alibaba. U.S. sales in China are having a significant impact on the economy. In one year, NDP Analytics reports that American product sales on Alibaba contributed $52.9B to the U.S. GDP. Explore Alibaba’s economic impact.