Building a platform that crosses borders

Editor's note: An increasing number of Chinese companies are emerging on the world stage as they strive to establish their brands outside the country. China Daily reporters asked the heads of some of the best-known firms how they present themselves overseas, how they compete against their global counterparts and how they might use lessons learned from their multinational rivals. This report, the third in our series, is by Meng Jing.

Most device makers in the world would want to debut their new gadgets at prestigious events, big-ticket ones that gain immediate global traction.

The annual CeBIT show in Hanover, Germany, the world's largest expo for state-of-the-art computer technology, used to be the event of choice for Chinese headset makers to make a big splash. But that seems to be no longer the case with a growing number of companies making a beeline for AliExpress, an online marketplace of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd that specializes in the sale of Chinese-made goods directly to consumers all over the world.