Immediately upon signing the contract, work started on transforming the ecommerce provider’s infrastructure and services. “The Google Cloud team delivered intensive training sessions to ensure our engagement with its cloud services was as smooth as possible,” says Hu. By late 2024, New Aim had completed two stages of its transition to Google Cloud, migrating its warehouse and order management system and Dropshipzone business to an infrastructure comprising Compute Engine virtual machine instances with Local SSD and Persistent Disk storage, Anthos to power its enterprise container platform, and Cloud SQL and Firestore to run its databases. Cloud VPN provides secure networking, while Cloud Armor helps protect the New Aim environment against malware. 

New Aim runs its internal supply chain management platform, AimCore, on a BigQuery data warehouse to analyze data from product sourcing, logistics, and warehousing services to support its ecommerce offering. “When we talk about the supply chain, from order management to predicting stock levels and managing inbound and outbound inventory in real-time, we rely on real-time data,” says Hu. “The category team under Ceci Chiu needs to have real-time information to understand when I need to communicate with my suppliers and contractors to ensure products meet their scheduled shipment. We need to collaborate internally and with external parties to ensure everyone is on the same page. This is our digital supply chain, and with Google Cloud, we’re well positioned to use AI to drive improvements.” 

Google Cloud’s data services present a range of opportunities for New Aim to fine-tune its operations to minimize the risk of delays that could see products arrive too late for seasonal demand. The business specializes in home and living products that are typically considerably bulkier than products sold by some multinational ecommerce providers, requiring considerably different warehouse processes around data and operations. 

With Google Cloud, New Aim has increased service uptime from 97% to 99%, improving the experience of its clients and building trust in the company’s platforms as enablers of retailers’ ecommerce operations. In addition, the organization can now detect and visualize abnormalities or downtime before they impact customers, reducing response times from hours to just 15 minutes.

New Aim is working with the Vertex AI Model Garden to enable small to medium businesses to run generative AI models in the AirOxy.AI platform, which runs in Google Cloud, for insights into pricing, market trends, and image optimization for product listings. The business also sees compelling applications for AI within its operations. 

One use case for AI within New Aim is to use Google Cloud AI services to capture information from suppliers to stitch together ‘product builds’ that incorporate details of a product and the reason why a customer would need it. The inputs received from suppliers currently vary considerably in quality, requiring the organization’s category team experts to undertake time-consuming editing and rewriting. “Once our proof-of-concept and work on minimum viable products are completed, we will have more and more capabilities as we move into the Vertex AI space,” says Hu. “We are also evaluating Google Shopping’s compatibility with our market position. 

“As we continue on this journey, we realize that Google Cloud AI can equip our employees with the right knowledge so they can come up with strategies to optimize our business and its offerings to retailers,” Cecilia Chiu, Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer, adds.