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Tag: tmall

  • Farah China to launch next year

    Farah China to launch next year

    Perry Ellis International has signed an agreement with MRH SpaRotica Groupe (MRH) to introduceFarah China next year.

    The brand will be launched in department stores, free-standing stores and specialty outlets as well as online with third-party eCommerce platforms such as Tmall. The first free-standing Farah store is planned to open early next year.

    With street credibility, the Farah has creative brand ambassadors from art, music and modern culture who are empowered to become product developers, storytellers and educators inspiring millennials. The products are sold internationally through major retailers and company-owned stores, as well as online.

    “This is our first agreement for Farah in greater China and represents a major step in the expansion of the brand outside of the United Kingdom and Europe,” says Perry Ellis International chairman/CEO George Feldenkreis.

    MRH president/CEO Richard Kisembo says the company is confident of the impact Farah can make in China. “We believe in brands that make emotional connections with consumers, and Farah will stand out for its modern classics.”

    Perry Ellis International is a designer, distributor and licensor of men’s and women’s apparel, accessories and fragrances. It owns a portfolio of brands including: Axist, Ben Hogan, Cubavera, Grand Slam,  Jantzen, John Henry, Laundry by Shelli Segal, Manhattan, Original Penguin by Munsingwear, Perry Ellis, Rafaella and Savane. The company also licenses trademarks from third parties, including Jag and Nike for swimwear, and Callaway, Jack Nicklaus and PGA Tour for golf apparel.

    Based in Shanghai, MRH curates and invests in brands through acquisition and licensing. It has retail stores, distributes merchandise through franchisees, and runs eCommerce websites.

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  • Online store sells out million-yuan Maseratis

    Online store sells out million-yuan Maseratis

    Italian car-maker Maserati launched its flagship store on Tmall, Alibaba’s online shopping site and the first 100 Maserati SUV Levantes, priced at 999,800 yuan (€137,600), sold out 18 seconds after being put up for advance sale at exactly 3 pm yesterday in China.

    Ultra-luxury cars are suffering from China’s slowest economic growth in a quarter of a century, as well as a government crackdown on ostentatious displays of wealth, but online retailing may provide a window of opportunity for high-end autos.

    The car is Maserati’s first SUV and is due to officially launch in China in July, and Maserati will add 500 cars to the online offering for advance purchase to meet demand.

    Tmall is one of the most popular online shopping sites in China, where buying online is booming. China has 667 million internet users, and it is the world’s largest e-commerce market. Online retail sales in mainland China were worth 3.877 trillion yuan (€530 billion) last year, up by one third on the previous year.

    Slow growth and a general austerity campaign has hit the super-cars, although it did rebound slightly in late 2015 on the back of government tax breaks. The number of imported cars in 2015 dropped 25 per cent year-on-year last year, according to data from China Automobile Trading.

    BMW-owned brand Rolls-Royce saw a decline of 54 per cent in sales last year year-on-year, while Volkswagen-owned Bentley saw its China sales fall 36 per cent last year.

    Maserati’s fellow Italian luxury brand Ferrari said in October that sales in the first three quarters of last year were down 24 per cent to 157 cars.

    Bucking the trend is Porsche, which saw its 2015 China sales rise 24 per cent to 58,000 cars.

    “Compared with mass-market brands, the ultra-luxury car segment has been hit harder by the economic slowdown,” Beijing-based independent industry analyst Zhang Zhiyong told the Global Times newspaper.

    Zhang believes that ultra-luxury cars face limited growth potential in China in the next few years.

    “Entrepreneurs, who are the main consumers of ultra-luxury cars, are more vulnerable to changes in the macro-economy,” he said.

    Gao Mengxiong, sales director of Maserati China, said Maserati’s customers were relatively young. The average age of Quattroporte drivers was 38 years old, while the average age of Ghibli drivers was 32 years of age. The company has already introduced an English-language slogan here – “Levante The Maserati of SUVs”.

    Maserati’s global sales are currently running at around 32,000, below forecasts of 50,000, but CEO Harald Wester said he expects to add around 30,000 cars to sales next year, with China expected to drive strong growth.

  • Tmall driving more than sales for top beauty brands

    Tmall driving more than sales for top beauty brands

    Scores of high-end cosmetics companies are setting up shop on Alibaba Group’s Tmall.com online marketplace as eCommerce continues to gain ground as a critical marketing and sales channel for reaching China’s increasingly sophisticated consumers.

    At the recent Tmall Beauty Awards ceremony in Shanghai, which celebrated the top cosmetics brands operating on the eCommerce platform, Alibaba announced that 29 well-known Western brands and 37 from Japan and Korea had storefronts on Tmall at the end of 2015, including more than 10 joining the platform last year alone such as Lancôme, Bobbi Brown, La Mer, Anessa and Avene. Another 20 cosmetics companies are planning to launch their own presence on Tmall this year.

    Alibaba also announced a cooperation agreement with Korean cosmetics maker AmorePacific Group to expand the latter’s Tmall presence. AmorePacific will add two more storefronts exclusively on Tmall for the Sulwhasoo and IOPE beauty brands in the following months. AmorePacific already operates the Laneige, Innisfree, Mamonde and Etude House e-shops on Tmall, and about 800,000 Chinese consumers have purchased goods from Laneige’s shop over the past three years, according to Alibaba. The brand also sold about 45,000 BB creams, or blemish balms, during Alibaba’s 11.11 Shopping Festival, bringing in US$1.4 million from that product alone.

    Alibaba has similar cooperation agreements with Procter & Gamble, Estée Lauder, L’Oréal and domestic retailer Shanghai Jahwa Corp.

    The eCommerce push by cosmetics companies comes amid strong growth in high-end cosmetics purchases by Chinese consumers. A report from Chinese research firm CBNData, released in conjunction with the awards, noted that total sales of cosmetics products in China climbed nearly 20 per cent to $74.1 billion last year from 2014. Citing independent researchers, CBNData’s report also said that online channels accounted for 36 per cent of that, or $27 billion, with Tmall controlling about a 70 per cent share of the B2C market. Alibaba Group is an investor in CBNData parent China Business Network.

    Tmall Cosmetics GM Mike Hu said total sales generated on all business-to-consumer retail websites in China currently account for 12 to 15 per cent of the entire cosmetics market, and he predicts those channels will grow by another 30 per cent to 50 per cent over the next two to three years.

    Hu stressed that Tmall offers more than just another sales channel to brands. It’s also a platform to promote new products, build a connection with customers and increase business both online and off. According to Hu, over 20 brands have introduced about 160 versions of products that were exclusive to Tmall shoppers, and the brands have launched more than 100 new products via the website in 2015.

    “Two or three years ago, eCommerce played as a sales channel since its significance grew and it helped enhance business,” said Gary Chu, online general manager at Estée Lauder China, said at the awards ceremony. “Now what we are thinking about is how to integrate brand property, content and products into our presence in Alibaba’s ecosystem to meet the needs and demands of the brand.”

    To that end, Estée Lauder has been engaging customers via its so-called Fans communities within the Tmall mobile app. One brand, Bobbi Brown, opened its Fans page last November and now has more than 640,000 followers. It offers make-up tips and sample trials, among other initiatives, to tackle customers’ most common inquiries in order to educate and interact with shoppers, while serving as a bridge to the Bobbi Brown storefront. In addition to the Fans page, the company also used Instagram-like photo sharing on Tmall to generate buzz about Bobbi Brown lipstick ahead of Chinese New Year earlier this month, and Estée Lauder regularly uses the Tmall mobile app to help launch new products.

    Alibaba Group CEO Daniel Zhang said Estée Lauder’s efforts are prime examples of ways brands can engage shoppers with content and convert interactions into business opportunities.

    “All the brands and merchants are the best content producers, and merchants should incorporate products into content that consumers are willing to read and eager to buy,” he said.

    Brands are also using their Tmall storefronts to boost their online-to-offline (O2O) business. So far 54 of them, including Estée Lauder, La Mer and Laneige, have integrated their online and offline membership programs and now allow users to make appointments for skin care treatments in brick-and-mortar stores online.

    Tmall will continue to promote O2O retail to “achieve the goal of same product, same service and same membership” online and offline, Hu said.

    Here are the winners from some of the biggest award categories from last Friday’s ceremony. The winners were chosen based on search popularity, interaction with shoppers, customer reviews, trial reports, sales and services among millions of customers and thousands of brands on Tmall in 2015.

    Most popular brands online: Laneige, Lancôme, Innisfree, Maybelline

    Hot search brands: Bobbi Brown, Avene, Sulwhasoo (which launched on March 1)

    Favorite brands among customers born in the 1990s:Sekkisei, The Face Shop, Hanhoo (Chinese domestic brand)

    Favorite brands among customers holding Alibaba Passport (shoppers spending more than RMB 100,000 ($15,270) annually on Alibaba’s platforms): Shiseido, Whoo, L’Oréal, Clarins, Innisfree

    Favorite brands among male shoppers: JVR (Chinese domestic brand), L’Oréal, NIVEA

    Best-selling brand: Pechoin (Chinese domestic brand)

    Outstanding and popular group: Estée Lauder Group

  • China $1.1T eCommerce Market On Horizon

    China $1.1T eCommerce Market On Horizon

    According to a recent report from Forrester, total eCommerce revenue for China, Japan, South Korea, India and Australia is projected to nearly double in the next five years, from $733 billion in 2014 to $1.4 trillion by 2020. That same report goes on to detail how these five Asian online economies have already outpaced the combined online retail markets in the U.S. and all of Western Europe, with China and India ranking as the two largest and fastest-growing markets worldwide.

    It goes on to point out that the Chinese market already surpassed that of the U.S. in 2015, and China remains the world’s largest eCommerce market, despite seeing its overall economic growth dip below 7 percent for the first time since 2009.

    “While the days of staggering year-over-year eCommerce growth in China are gone,” wrote Lily Varon, lead author of the Forrester report and analyst for eBusiness and channel strategy, “current growth rates are solid and more consistent with other mature markets in the region, like Japan and South Korea.”

    Varon also went on to project that China would continue to lead the region’s market growth, expanding to be nine times larger than Japan’s $122 billion market in 2020 and 17 times larger than South Korea’s $65 billion.

    India is also projected to see online sales expand by five times, fueled by a rapidly increasing number of online shoppers entering the market and per capita online spend continuing to increase. However, in the case of India, Varon noted that the country’s underdeveloped logistics, “challenging” connectivity, as well as a traditionally cash-based culture, would pose significant challenges to online retailers looking to grow the online India market.

    The Forrester report goes on to note an important and defining trend across the region: the dominance of Web-only retailers, such as Rakuten and Amazon in Japan; Taobao, Tmall and Jingdon in China; and Flipkart and Snapdeal in India.

    “Consumers have flocked to online pure-plays rather than their traditional retail counterparts,” Varon wrote. “In very few markets in the region do traditional retailers hold any dominant position or even come close to competing with the Web-only giants.”

    Having noted the significance of Web-only players, Varon shared that omnichannel functionality had not been as robust in Asian markets as it had in the U.S. or U.K. This, though, was starting to shift, as more traditional retailers start to make the move towards eCommerce in Asia. Australian retailers have been forced to play catch-up, with omnichannel offerings, such as click-and-collect, being adopted by global players, like TopShop and Zara, and helping to bring omnichannel services to the local market.

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  • Alibaba’s global marketplace attracts 5400 foreign brands

    Alibaba’s global marketplace attracts 5400 foreign brands

    U.S. goods are among the best sellers on Alibaba’s Tmall Global shopping site. More than 5,400 foreign brands from 53 countries are selling goods on Tmall Global, an online marketplace Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. launched in 2014 to take advantage of China’s relaxed rules on consumer purchases from foreign websites.

    Of those 5,400 brands, 4,300 have never sold in China, according to a just-released 2015 China Cross-Border Consumption Report from Tmall Global and Chinese consulting firm CBN Data. Tmall Global allows retailers and brands without a China business license to take orders from Chinese consumers and then send the products through Chinese customers.

    Sales on Tmall Global increased 179% in Alibaba’s fiscal third quarter ended Dec. 31, according to Alibaba’s recent quarterly report. Alibaba did not report the value of sales on the marketplace for foreign goods.

    The new report says U.S. companies are most often ranked among the top 10 in various products categories on Tmall Global, followed by brands from Japan, Germany, Australia and Korea. The fastest-growing categories on Tmall Global are children’s products, nutritional items, cosmetics and snacks.

    Among the retailers selling on Tmall Global are U.S. department store chain Macy’s Inc., the U.K.’s House of Fraser and Sainsbury’s, and Metro Group of Germany. Consumers can also buy Huggies diapers from Kimberly Clark, food products from Danone of France (whose products are marketed under the name Dannon in the United States) and cosmetics from Japanese brands Kao and Shiseido.

    Alibaba has worked with government agencies in 13 countries to set up “pavilions” featuring goods from those nations. For example, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has cooperated with Alibaba on a program to sell cherries from the northwestern United States on Tmall Global.

    During the big Singles’ Day sales that Alibaba promotes every Nov. 11, 95 million consumers visited Tmall Global and 30 million made purchases, the report says.

    Alibaba’s chief rival in China, JD.com Inc., also has created an online shopping mall for foreign brands called JD Worldwide. Among the companies to recently launch on the JD site are luxury brands Tod’s and TAG Heuer.

    China in recent years has made it easier for Chinese consumers to buy goods for their personal use online from foreign companies. The government recently increased the maximum purchase allowed under these cross-border e-commerce regulations from 10,000 yuan ($1,519) to 50,000 yuan ($7,597) per transaction, according to a report on the Chinese luxury market by U.S. consulting firm Bain & Co.

    JD is No. 1 Internet 2015 Retailer China 500, which ranks retailers by their online sales in China. While Alibaba’s China marketplaces account for more than three-quarters of online retail purchases in China, it’s not ranked in the China 500 because Alibaba is not the merchant of record for those sales, instead providing a platform for other merchants to sell.

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  • China’s Top Boutique Openings in 2015

    China’s Top Boutique Openings in 2015

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    Last year is yet another in a line of several that proved tough for the luxury retail industry in China. The anti-graft campaign has continued in full force, causing some shoppers to steer clear of flashy, high-cost purchases, while online shopping has driven many malls around the country to close. Still, 2015 was a big year for several international high-end labels, independent boutiques, and department stores that entered China for the first time or were revamped to give consumers an updated look. Here are six brands that made headlines in the style sector this year.

    Fei Space

    _DSC0251

    Formerly located in 798 Art District, Fei Space is a culmination of local designers and stylish brands from around the world. Shoppers may also recognize the boutique for its pop-up store in Beijing’s U-Town mall that featured past-season collections from Topshop and Topman. Now that the official Topshop has opened in Galeries Lafayette (see below), the new Fei Space now is primarily focused on Chinese independent designers and some casualwear, such as Beijing-based American workwear brand Taciturnli and Shenzhen designer VMajor. It’s located in the Grand Summit mall, an evolving shopping center in the capital’s embassy district that includes a multitude of high-end Chinese boutiques and local health food chains aimed at the discerning shopper.

    Triple Major Beijing

    triple_major

    The year was off to a good start as far as openings go—Triple Major wowed media with its expansive new store in Beijing’s developing Dashilar district, which was designed in part to reflect the building’s former use: a Chinese pharmacy. Owner Ritchie Chan moved the concept store featuring both international and local brands from its home in Beijing’s central hutongs to an area that’s quickly transforming into a hub for young creatives with no shortage of locally-owned third-wave coffee shops, art galleries, and small, artisan boutiques.

    Topshop at Galeries Lafayette

    The new Topshop location at Galeries Lafayette in Beijing. (China Daily)

    The new Topshop location at Galeries Lafayette in Beijing. (China Daily)

    Topshop has been open in Hong Kong for a few years, but only this year has the brand decided to put roots in the mainland, namely in the French department store Galeries Lafayette, a mall that has been struggling to attract shoppers in Beijing’s Xidan area. This version is tiny compared to its flagship and blends in on a floor mainly reserved for Asian independent labels.

    Tommy Hilfiger

    Tommy Hilfiger (L) with socialite Olivia Palermo (R) at the brand's new store opening in Beijing. (Tommy Hilfiger/Facebook)

    Tommy Hilfiger (L) with socialite Olivia Palermo (R) at the brand’s new store opening in Beijing. (Tommy Hilfiger/Facebook)

    Tommy Hilfiger kicked off opening its largest store in Beijing’s In88 shopping center with a football-themed runway show in the spring, hoping to gain Chinese fans by pushing an all-American aesthetic.

    JNBY Concept Store

    A look from JNBY's latest collection. (Courtesy Photo)

    A look from JNBY’s latest collection. (Courtesy Photo)

    The JNBY Concept Store is nothing new outside of China, but Beijing gained its first in the new Grand Summit mall this year along with an art exhibit in cooperation with Beijing’s UCCA to kick things off. Fans of the international, Hangzhou-born brand that’s known for supporting independent Chinese designers with high-end clothing for adults and children also get a selection of contemporary jewelry and handbags and artisan chocolate.

    Macy’s (Tmall)

    Macys

    Macy’s entered China this year on more official terms when it opened its shop on Alibaba Group’s Tmall, becoming the first U.S. department store to do so. It steered away from opening a brick-and-mortar shop, unlike its competitors who have done so and struggled, like the UK brand Marks & Spencer. M&S closed a chunk of its stores in Shanghai and instead opened a brand new space in Beijing’s business district shopping center, The Place.

    Michael Kors

    Model Ming Xi makes an appearance at the Michael Kors opening in Beijing. (Michael Kors/Facebook)

    Model Ming Xi makes an appearance at the Michael Kors opening in Beijing. (Michael Kors/Facebook)

    Huamao Shopping Center in Beijing acquired a 9,000-square-foot Michael Kors flagship store last month, which was celebrated with a photo exhibition done in collaboration with Vogue China. The new shop is now the largest in Asia, followed by the Shanghai flagship that opened last year alongside a high-profile campaign to attract jet-set Chinese consumers.

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  • Peru to have Tmall Global shopfront

    Peru to have Tmall Global shopfront

    Peru and China have signed an agreement allowing Peruvian products to be sold directly to Chinese consumers online.

    Peruvian producers will set up stores on Alibaba Group’s Tmall Global via a country shopfront, much like Tmall has created with Germany, Australia, the US, Korea, the Netherlands, Thailand and other nations.

    The agreement will take Peruvian exporters closer to Chinese consumers and the value chain of Peruvian products will be fully developed, said VP of the Peruvian Association of Exporters, Eduardo Amorrortu during Monday’s contract signing ceremony.

    “Ecommerce has been developing very rapid. It has had a great impact on the economy and traditional modes of consumption have changed,” said VP of the Association of Chinese Companies in Peru (AECP), Kong Aimin.

  • BCBGMaxAzria opens Tmall store

    BCBGMaxAzria opens Tmall store

    BCBGMaxAzria, the US premier lifestyle fashion brand has partnered with B2C cross-border eCommerce solutions provider VoyageOne to expand its online footprint in China.

    “We are pleased to launch of BCBG on Tmall. We are very optimistic about the opportunity in China,” says Max Azria, founder, chairman and CEO of BCBG Max Azria Group.

    BCBGMaxAzria’s flagship line is now available to Chinese online shoppers on Alibaba’s Tmall Global through VoyageOne’s platform. BCBGMaxAzria can now efficiently integrate, sell, and manage its online selling process across multiple marketplaces in China.

    “BCBGMaxAzria is a truly an American flagship designer brand and completely understands the complexity of cross-border eCommerce landscape in China and the need for a proven technology and solution delivery mechanism by which BCBGMaxAzria seamlessly integrate, launch and manage its online footprint in China,” said Dennis Zhang, VoyageOne CEO.

    “We’re extremely pleased to partner with BCBGMaxAzria to delivering true online shopping and customer service experiences through a single platform while help them grow their online business in China.”

    Michelle Magallon, SVP of digital commerce & omnichannel with BCBG Max Azria, says China is an important international market for the brand.

    The BCBGMaxAzria Winter 2015 collection is already available at Tmall’s Hong Kong and China stores.

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  • HKTDC Design Gallery Wan Chai relaunched

    HKTDC Design Gallery Wan Chai relaunched

    The Hong Kong Trade Development Council has unveiled a revamped HKTDC Design Gallery shop at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

    HKTDC executive director Margaret Fong was joined by famous Hong Kong actor Moses Chan and many of the city’s top designers at an opening ceremony yesterday.

    The store was created to promote products invented back in 1991.

    The diverse variety of products on offer highlights the extraordinary creativity of Hong Kong designers in areas ranging from jewellery, watches, electronics and fashion to home products, gifts and children’s items.

    The revamped HKTDC Design Gallery Wan Chai shop showcases nearly 5500 innovative products from more than 230 Hong Kong designers and brands in eight distinctly designed zones.

    Hong Kong designer brands feature in DG Discover; handbags and accessories in DG Vogue; environmentally friendly products in DG Green; baby and children’s products in DG Mini; home goods and gifts in DG Delights; electronic and digital goods in DG Smart; high-end luxury products such as jewellery, watches and leather and cashmere goods in DG Luxe; and collaborative creations by Hong Kong designers and international brands that combine the best of East and West in DG Plus.

    Featuring minimalist geometric shapes and a circular motif, the design of the revamped HKTDC Design Gallery shop creates a vibrant atmosphere to engage customers and elevate brand image. Light wood colours, grey gradients and black linear accents are used to create a comfortable, contemporary environment. The DG Luxe zone is distinguished from other areas of the shop by the use of dark wood colours and deep grey fabric lining.

    At the opening ceremony, Fong said that thanks to the support of local residents, visitors and traders, the shop has been attracting more than 1 million customers each year.

    Apart from new Design Gallery shops in Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Wuhan and other mainland cities, Fong also spoke about the HKTDC’s strategy of collaborating with department stores and lifestyle shops to set up “shops in shops” in Hong Kong and on the Chinese mainland, to bring the best Hong Kong brands to more customers.

    Fong said the HKTDC is also establishing online shops on leading Hong Kong eCommerce platforms such as ShopThruPost, YesStyle and Zalora, as well as Taobao, Tmall and JD.com on the Chinese mainland, in an effort to develop eCommerce opportunities for Hong Kong businesses.

    Between now and December 2015, customers who make a one-time purchase of HK$300 or more at any HKTDC Design Gallery shop in Hong Kong will be entitled to lifetime membership with the DG Club. Members are entitled to a special shopping discount and can earn points to redeem for exclusive gifts or instant cash rebates. To celebrate the re-launch of the HKTDC Design Gallery Wan Chai shop, members will be awarded double points for purchases made between 16 and 18 November 2015.

    The HKTDC Design Gallery Wan Chai Shop is located on the ground floor of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, 1 Harbour Rd, Wan Chai.

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  • Xiaomi Brand Dominates Singles Day In China

    Xiaomi Brand Dominates Singles Day In China

    Celebrated every Nov. 11, Singles Day is a tradition that dates back to 1993 which initially involved bachelors from Nanjing University who would like to go out, meet, and party with others. The celebration soon included single women and became a huge holiday in China where single individuals go out in massive meet-and-greet events.

    Singles Day is China’s version of USA’s Black Friday, where Chinese businesses spur sales by offering attractive deals and huge price cuts on their products. Xiaomi, already a popular smartphone brand that offers cheap smartphones and other mobile devices, initiated its Singles Day strategy from Nov. 1, offering daily promos and sweet deals and ultimately culminated its run on the big day itself, according to Digital Trends.

    During the build-up, Xiaomi even provided a teaser on a new smartphone. The strategy proved to be successful, as the smartphone maker immediately raked in $16 million by 12:12 am on Nov. 11. Thirteen minutes later, sales reached $31 million. Two minutes before 1:30 am, Xiaomi already has $63 million in the bank. By the end of Singles Day, Xiaomi’s sales reached a whopping $188 million.

    According to a statement by the China-based smartphone manufacturer, the $125 Redmi Note 2 was their bestselling smartphone. Xiaomi’s smartwatch, the Mi Band Pulse, was the company’s most popular device, which did not come as a surprise, given its $16 price tag.

    Xiaomi’s success is based on its strategy of providing cheap smartphones with high-end features, and China is its biggest market. Recently, top competitor Huawei has overtaken Xiaomi as China’s top smartphone vendor in the last quarter, CNBC reports.

    Meanwhile, China-based online market company Alibaba also broke its own record on Singles Day. The e- ommerce giant clocked in $14.3 billion in sales via its online payment service. On last year’s Singles Day, Alibaba registered $9.3 billion in sales. This year’s figure represents a 60 percent jump from the previous year, indicating the company’s continued growth in a crowded Chinese market.

     

  • Alibaba goes Dutch

    Alibaba goes Dutch

    Alibaba says new relationships sealed with Dutch organisations in recent days will help continue to lay the groundwork for European expansion of its eCommerce businesses.

    Alibaba Group says it has established several partnerships and collaboration agreements with Dutch organisations including airline KLM and the Dutch Consulate.

    Announced during a visit to Alibaba’s campus in Hangzhou, China, by a delegation of Dutch companies and government officials, the agreements included the launch of a Holland “pavillion” onTmall Global, an Alibaba online marketplace that provides a streamlined sales and logistics channel for overseas companies to sell directly to Chinese consumers.

    Alibaba, which is positioning its shopping websites as a cost-effective gateway to China for foreign brands and merchants, has in recent months established a number of online pavillions showcasing the products of countries such as the US, UK, France and South Korea. Built in partnership with the Dutch Consulate, the Holland pavilion on Tmall Global will feature popular Dutch brands such as Nutrilon, Hero Baby, Philips and Friso, Alibaba said in a statement.

    Meanwhile, Dutch supermarket chains Albert Heijn and Attent have launched new flagship stores on Tmall Global, while Alibaba’s travel website, Alitrip, has announced agreements with KLM and theNetherlands Board of Tourism & Conventions. The latter struck a deal with Alitrip to establish a destination page for Chinese travellers on the website and to “explore new ways of collaboration,” according to Alibaba.

    KLM agreed to launch an Alitrip.com flagship store selling airline tickets and other services to Chinese travellers.

    The visiting Dutch delegation included Dutch King Willem-Alexander, who is touring the PRC as part of an official state visit. Alibaba Group executive chairman Jack Ma, who hosted the delegation with other Alibaba executives, said in a speech that “Holland is a nation that can make impossible possible… Alibaba is also a company that loves to take challenges, loves to innovate, and loves to try new things”.

    “Many people said 16 years ago our dream was impossible, but we have made it a reality today,” Ma said. “Now we have over 120 million people shopping on our marketplaces each day, where they have access to products and fresh produce from far-away countries around the world such as Holland.”

    Alibaba, which dominates China’s eCommerce market, has said that increasing the size of its global e-commerce operations is a key long-term strategy. The company has been beefing up its European ties, this month announcing the expansion of its London office and the establishment of a new office in Milan, with locations in Germany and France to follow. Ma was recently appointed as a business advisor to UK Prime Minister David Cameron.

    Alibaba also plans to highlight international eCommerce and cross-border shopping during its upcoming 11.11 Global Shopping Festival, a massive 24-hour sale to be held Nov. 11. More than 80 Dutch brands currently offer products and services on Alibaba’s Tmall and Tmall Global marketplaces, and many will participate in Tmall’s 11.11 festival promotions, the company said.

  • Coca-Cola Tmall flagship opens

    Coca-Cola Tmall flagship opens

    Coca-Cola, one of the world’s most iconic beverage brands, is opening a flagship store on Alibaba Group’s Tmall online marketplace.

    The Coca-Cola Tmall store comes just in time for the Global Shopping Festival, the world’s biggest online sale, on November 11.

    Coca-Cola has designed special packaging for the 24-hour 11.11 festival and its shop, now in trial operation in preparation for an official launch in early November, is already pre-selling four-packs of Coke priced at RMB 29 yuan (US$4.60) containing bottles adorned with images of Tmall’s cat mascot or the 11.11 festival logo.

    The shop will soon sell other Coca-Cola brands including Sprite, Fanta and Minute Maid, as well as related merchandise like the beverage company’s classic polar bear dolls, according to Coca-Cola.

    Coke and Alibaba have also agreed to collaborate on branding, marketing, offline services and the launch of exclusive products, according to a Chinese language press release issued by Alibaba. The collaboration shows a commitment by both parties to “embrace change and adapt to e-retail,” said Henrique Braun, Coca-Cola president of greater China & Korea, noting that the internet “has gradually changed people’s lives and consumer behavior.”

    The addition of Coke to its roster of merchants and brands participating in the 11.11 festival is a coup for Alibaba. The company has emphasised this year’s shopping bonanza is meant to be a global event, with overseas and global retailers selling directly to Chinese consumers through Tmall and consumers all over the world buying goods on Alibaba’s AliExpress international marketplace.

    Alibaba expects more than 5000 international brands from 25 countries and regions to participate in festival this year.

    To whet shoppers’ appetites for the sale, Alibaba and Coca-Cola plan to give away five million bottles of 300ml Cokes. Starting from November 1, the bonus bevvies will be distributed randomly to consumers who order other merchandise through Tmall.

    • Original reporting by Alizila, an independent but Alibaba-funded news resource on Alibaba’s global activities.
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  • Stradivarius launches the chain’s new website in China – stradivarius.cn

    Stradivarius launches the chain’s new website in China – stradivarius.cn

    The chain has 65 bricks & mortar stores in China and also sells its products online via both its own website (www.stradivarius.cn) and the T-Mall platform

    An event celebrated in Shanghai’s Union Building provided the backdrop for presentation of Stradivarius’s new website in China, which reinforces the brand’s e-commerce presence in this market. Stradivarius gained an initial foothold in the Chinese e-commerce market last April when it launched online sales via the T-Mall platform, on which the rest of the Inditex Group’s brands are also represented.  Just eight months later, on 8 September, Stradivarius direct online sales platform, www.stradivarius.cn, went live, adding to the chain’s network of 65 stores in China.

    The Shanghai event, dubbed “The Event Paper: Asia edition”, took place on the top floor of the Union Building, a neo-renaissance building dating to 1916. From its rooftop terrace, the guests were able to enjoy stunning views of the Bund, the Chinese financial capital’s most cosmopolitan district.

    The party was attended by international top model Liu Wen, the leading lights from the Asian press and it girls from all over the world. Moreover, Cate Underwood, the star of the brand’s FW15 collection campaign and DJ, took care of the music. A dedicated event report can be downloaded from the Stradivarius website.

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  • Metro opens on Tmall

    Metro opens on Tmall

    German hypermarket retailer Metro has opened a flagship store on Alibaba’s Tmall.com, reports Inside Retail Asia.

    Metro Group has entered into a strategic alliance with Alibaba Group’s Tmall.com platform to offer German goods to Chinese consumers, according to the report.

    The firms said they are committed to exploring further collaboration opportunities in sourcing and supply chain, Inside Retail Asia said.

    Metro said its new cross-border e-shop platform will further tap the potential of the Chinese consumer market, where it already operates more than 80 stores.

    “The online storefront will sell products of Metro Group’s sales divisions’ private labels as well as supplier brands from Germany. In the first phase, over 100 products in the categories of dairy, canned foods, coffee, and chocolate from Metro Cash & Carry Germany, as well as cosmetics goods from Real are to be offered online,” Metro said in a statement.

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  • Korea Fashion Week extends Alibaba’s trade cooperation

    Korea Fashion Week extends Alibaba’s trade cooperation

    Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group launched its Korea Fashion Week with its Taobao, Juhuasuan and Tmall online platforms in Seoul.

    Alibaba pledged to strengthen its exploration of overseas markets and to ink agreements with overseas brands to jointly explore the market, the report said.

    Imported Korean products have achieved annual sales of more than 10 billion yuan (US$1.6 billion) on Alibaba’s online retail platforms, according to statistics released by the company. Best-selling imports include beauty products, women’s clothing, daily life goods and baby products, accounting for 60% of the total market for imported Korean goods, according to statistics.

    The two nations have repeatedly announced moves to boost bilateral trade. In March, the two signed a free trade agreement. In addition, South Korea became one of the top destinations for Chinese tourists traveling abroad, the report said.

    In mid-May, Alibaba chair Jack Ma visited Seoul for the opening ceremony of the group’s Korean shop, indicating more Korean brands and products can reach Chinese consumers through the Alibaba platform.

    Samsung C&T, South Korea’s largest conglomerate with interests in construction, electronics, chemicals, finance and numerous other fields, has already moved three of its apparel brands — Beanpole, Rapido and Mvio — into the Chinese market through Tmall. It plans to cultivate China as its second domestic market, Samsung said.

    Samsung has annual revenue of US$30 billion.

    South Korea’s Eland Group began cooperating with Juhuasuan and Tmall in 2013, and reached sales of over 300 million yuan (US$47 million) last year. The group is expected to double sales to more than 600 million yuan (US$94 million) this year.

    The popularity of Korean TV dramas in China has sustained demand for Korean clothing, with 80% of the 4.32 million Chinese tourists to South Korea in 2013 shopping for clothes, shoes and bags.

    More than 200 Korean fashion brands have joined the Alibaba fashion week in Seoul, with most of them aiming to enter the Chinese market via the Alibaba retail platform. Zhang Jianfeng, president of Alibaba’s retail group, said he hopes to introduce Korean brands to Chinese consumers through their cooperation.

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