Alibaba is planning to expand its operation to Australia and New Zealand.

The company aims to open its first local office in Melbourne by the end of 2016, Shanghai Daily reported. The Australian office will be led by Maggie Zhou as managing director, John O'Loghlen as business development director and James Hudson as director of corporate affairs and marketing.

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Michael Evans, group president of the world’s largest e-commerce platform, will be visiting Australia this week to meet with Australian and New Zealand stakeholders. Alibaba is targeting a customer base of two billion in the Australian region.

Evans will be meeting with senior business, industry and government figures to inform them about the company’s platforms and Alibaba's role as a window to international markets. Evans will visit Sydney, Melbourne, Auckland and Wellington as part of the trip.

“With a local office and expanded team, we will be well-positioned to support Australian and New Zealand merchants already on our platforms, as well as new merchants looking to expand into China. We have an active consumer base of 423 million across our China retail platforms where they have access to authentic and quality products from countries around the world,” Zhou said in the statement.

Alibaba has already brought more than 1,000 Australian brands to the Chinese markets through its e-commerce site. The Chinese e-commerce company is determined to work with more local firms, providing them with planning, merchandising, sales and marketing solutions. In addition, it plans to enlist more companies to sell their items through Tmall and AliExpress.

Alibaba's full range of services includes digital entertainment and travel logistics, according to Business Insider.

TagsAlibaba, ecommerce, Australia, Tmall, Alipay, Alibaba Australia, Alibaba New Zealand, eBay, Amazon, Jack Ma