Nina Lvanova, a 31-year-old Russian, left her hometown and established an e-commerce company in 2017 in the city of Suifenhe on the China-Russia border, aiming to bring more Russian products to Chinese consumers.
Lvanova begins her busy day at around 8 a.m. every morning in her almost 60-square-meter shop. Delivering parcels, selecting goods and preparing for e-commerce livestreams, she said she was "busy as a bee."
"Sometimes there is no time to have lunch, but it's worth it," she said.
Relying on livestreaming, Lvanova's shop can receive as many as 2,000 orders each day.
"At the very beginning, I had no idea about e-commerce livestreaming, but it's proven to be a brilliant idea to spur sales," she said.
Over this year's Singles' Day shopping festival in China, her shop saw growing sales.
Suifenhe has attracted more than 2,300 enterprises like Lvanova's to open online shops on its 20-plus e-commerce platforms. The city has also built several offline direct sale centers and experience pavilions for Russian commodities.
Suifenhe has become an important trade center for Russian and Chinese goods due to its convenient transportation network and preferential trade policies.
"It's easier for me to select Russian commodities to sell on my online shop," Lvanova said.
After living in China for three years, Lvanova is now able to speak fluent Chinese, adopting a northeast Chinese accent. "I know a new place name every time I deliver a parcel. It's an interesting way to learn the language," she said.
"It's a meaningful thing to introduce good-quality Russian goods to Chinese consumers," she said.
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