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Alibaba’s first US presence 11 Main debuts

By WTOP Staff

MAE ANDERSON
AP Retail Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — China’s largest e-commerce company is making its first appearance in the U.S. with the debut of 11Main.com, an invite-only online marketplace that showcases small business retailers.

Industry watchers will be paying close attention because 11 Main is owned by Alibaba, the e-commerce giant in China that filed for an initial public offering in the U.S. in May. Bigger than Amazon and eBay combined, Alibaba had no U.S. e-commerce presence until now.

Forrester analyst Sucharita Mulpuru believes Alibaba won’t find it easy to break into the crowded online shopping industry.

“U.S. e-commerce is crowded and relies on high marketing expenses to rise above the clutter,” she said. “The hope is high. We’ll see if they live up to expectations.”

For now, Alibaba is starting small with 11 Main, based in San Mateo, California. The site, which debuts Wednesday in a beta phase, will feature “hundreds of thousands” of products from 1,000 to 2,000 upscale specialty shops and boutiques around the country that were vetted by 11 Main.

11 Main is going live just as Alibaba prepares to go public. Although it’s not well-known in the United States, Alibaba is a powerhouse that helped drive the rise of e-commerce in China, a transformation that has given millions of households greater access to clothes, books and consumer electronics in a society that in the 1980s still required ration tickets for some supermarket items.

The 15-year-old company has navigated technical and financial challenges and a battle with eBay Inc. to become the world’s biggest online bazaar and is now planning to sell stock in the U.S. Analysts say its initial public offering — planned for later this year– could raise up to $20 billion.

The 11 Main site’s layout is clutter-free and without ads, similar to social-media sharing site Pinterest. Shoppers can browse or search by category or retailer. The site features video profiles of some of the small businesses along with its products to give users a sense of what the stores and their owners are like.

Forrester analyst Kelland Willis said Alibaba’s strategy with 11 Main is to try to offer the Amazon or eBay shopper a different type of online shopping experience, giving each vendor its own identity on the site and offering a more curated shopping experience.

That’s what Alibaba’s hugely successful sites offer in China, Willis said.

“They’re trying to come in to the U.S. market and compete using that,” she said.

Without ads or retailer fees, 11 Main plans to generate revenue by taking a 3.5 percent cut of each transaction. In return, retailers get 11 Main’s national marketing power and reach.

“We want the shops to represent the diversity of Main Street. Some shops are high-end boutiques and some are more vintage,” said Mike Effle, president and general manager of 11 Main. The company’s name is intended to evoke bringing Main Street online. And the the “11” in its name is meant to represent the “1-to-1” relationship that customers and merchants have on the site, the company said.

Tiger Bachler is one of the site’s beta vendors. She owns Alys Grace, a three-shop chain in California’s Bay Area that offers upscale clothing and accessories like $175 Chan Luu scarves and $300 Diane Von Furstenberg dresses. The stores are well known in the area and the company already has an online presence at www.alysgrace.com, but Bachler said it’s hard to direct customers to the site because the company does mainly local advertising.

“We’ve been struggling with the ability to reach a large audience being a small business,” she said. “We anticipate (11 Main) will be able to give us a wider audience with their marketplace expertise and marketing power.”

The site is going to begin as invitation-only when it launches on Wednesday. Consumers can request an invitation at 11main.com.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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