AliExpress Pilots Free VIP Program to Lock in Top Spenders
PYMNTS | ·
Alibaba Group’s international eCommerce site, AliExpress, is testing a VIP program called Elite, The Information reported Wednesday (Sept. 30), citing an unnamed source. AliExpress is offering Elite on an invitation-only basis to customers in select countries who have spent more than $800 a year on the site. No fees are required to belong to Elite. […] The post AliExpress Pilots Free VIP Program to Lock in Top Spenders appeared first on PYMNTS.com .
Alibaba Group ’s international eCommerce site, AliExpress , is testing a VIP program called Elite , The Information reported Wednesday (Sept. 30), citing an unnamed source.
AliExpress is offering Elite on an invitation-only basis to customers in select countries who have spent more than $800 a year on the site. No fees are required to belong to Elite. Members receive a 5% discount on many products, 24/7 online customer service and hassle-free returns, according to the report.
AliExpress is testing Elite in Australia, the United Kingdom, Germany and Spain. The company plans to expand the program to other European countries and South Korea in October, and to the United States at a time that has not yet been determined, the report said.
AliExpress expects Elite to have 1 million members by the end of the year, per the report.
Alibaba Group did not immediately reply to PYMNTS’ request for comment.
The testing of Elite is part of a larger effort by AliExpress to focus on branded goods and premium services rather than low prices, according to the report.
AliExpress had engaged in a price war with rival eCommerce firms Shein and Temu , but all three firms shifted their focus after the U.S. introduced new tariffs and the European Union placed a handling fee on packages from outside the region, the report said.
As part of this shift, AliExpress is testing next-day delivery in some European cities and increasing the share of branded products in its product lineup, per the report.
Alibaba Group said in an Aug. 20 press release that AliExpress achieved operating profit during the quarter ended June 30.
“We continued to diversify and enrich our product offerings by leveraging the supply chain advantages of the Alibaba ecosystem,” the company said in the release. “The proportion of AliExpress’ sales that are contributed by local product supplies has continued to increase significantly year over year.”
It was reported in August 2025 that Temu restarted shipping products from China to consumers in the U.S. after negotiations between Washington and Beijing led the U.S. to reduce the rate on small packages and agree to lower tariffs . Temu had paused its “fully-managed” shipments in May 2025.
In July 2025, it was reported that Temu was trying to overhaul its business model in the wake of U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods.
The post AliExpress Pilots Free VIP Program to Lock in Top Spenders appeared first on PYMNTS.com .