Alibaba got to be the worlds largest retailer

I see that 'largest retailer' reference a lot, but everything I see on Alibaba falls into what I'd call the 'wholesale' category - like the minimum 5 paddles requirement at the site linked. Dealing one-on-one with individual customers is different than business-to-business, I think.
But, if you travel to China (and can follow up or buy in person?) and can communicate in Chinese, it would make solving any problems a lot easier, no doubt.
Axis Kayak is a known company in the paddling community; Bjorn Thomasson is their designer.