JD Spares No Effort to Ensure Security of Cold Chain Network

Posted on by Kelly Dawson

by Kelly Dawson and Yuchuan Wang

As COVID-19 vaccines are rolling out worldwide, the spotlight has turned to cold chain, which is the temperature-controlled supply chain required to safely transport the vaccine. On Jan. 27th, China’s Ministry of Transport announced that JD Logistics will be among the first batch of companies transporting the vaccine across China.

JD Logistics has developed an award-winning advanced cold chain supply network to support the cold transport of other products too, including perishable frozen foods, medicines and more.

In addition to strict temperature controls to ensure safe delivery, the pandemic has also necessitated additional disinfection to prevent against any possible spread of the virus—a requirement JD has spared no effort to implement, with meticulous detail at every step of a product package’s journey from supplier to customers’ doorsteps.

 

 

“We are making every effort to ensure that the products strictly implement the cold chain warehousing policy of JD and the government, to ensure the safety of consumers,” said a spokesperson from JD’s online fresh food business JD Fresh, which has worked closely with JD Logistics to develop the protocols.

First, all of JD’s cold chain employees undergo weekly nucleic acid testing—and now vaccination. This includes warehouse workers, delivery drivers, and couriers.

In JD’s warehouses, a team of disinfection staff don hazmat suits to spray disinfectant in every warehousing area multiple times a day to ensure that the environment is absolutely secure. Trucks and other JD vehicles also undergo the same disinfection process.

JD has also enacted multiple steps to ensure that the packages themselves do not introduce harmful elements.

Having secured the environment for packages, JD has also enacted multiple steps to ensure that the packages themselves do not introduce harmful elements. Take imported cherries for example: In order for JD warehouses to accept the products, merchants must provide four documents: negative results of nucleic acid test, customs declaration forms and certification of both entry inspection and disinfection.

Nucleic acid test result

Nucleic acid test result

Then, before packages are brought into JD’s warehouse, a JD staff thoroughly disinfects the external surfaces of the packages. As the packages are brought into the warehouse and later carried to trucks for delivery, they will again undergo multiple disinfection steps.

JD Fresh has also increased the inventory of essential products including vegetables, milk and eggs and frozen foods by 300% to ensure supply during the upcoming Chinese New Year holiday.

Since 2014, JD Logistics has built out an extensive cold chain logistics network, now operating 50 cold chain warehouses and over 34,000 truck routes covering cold chain fulfillment in 300 cities.

 

(kellydawson@jd.com, yuchuan.wang@jd.com)

JD.com Becomes IARD’s First China Partner

Posted on by Ella Kidron

by Ella Kidron

JD.com announced that it has joined forces with the International Alliance of Responsible Drinking (IARD). As part of a global coalition, JD will join the 12 leading global beer, wine and spirits companies that form IARD, and 12 prominent global and regional online retailers, platforms and delivery platforms who operate across six continents, in promoting the responsible sale and delivery of alcohol online.

The members of IARD, as they appear in IARD’s official press release

The members of IARD, as they appear in IARD’s official press release

Specifically, the partnership will involve the development of global standards that 1) enhance safeguards and security measures so minors are unable to buy alcohol online; 2) put in place mechanisms to prevent the delivery of beer, wine and spirits to minors or individuals showing visible signs of intoxication; and 3) promote global standards as a resource to support the development of national in-country codes and practices for the online sale and delivery of alcohol.

JD, a leading retail and e-commerce leader in beer, wine and spirits in China, with over 440 million active customers across the JD.com platform, has already taken steps to promote responsible consumption of alcohol, such as providing clear guidance for safe consumption in the product descriptions on its e-commerce platform. JD will continue to strengthen its efforts in this area.

“This partnership furthers our long-term commitment to consumer safety and responsible consumption,” said Mr. Yan Liu, Head of JD Super Import Spirits. “In addition to ensuring product quality, we want to guarantee that consumers have an enjoyable and informed experience when shopping on our platform. We look forward to furthering this effort with IARD and its members.”

“This partnership marks a ground-breaking coalition to develop global standards for the online sale and delivery of alcohol,” said Henry Ashworth, IARD President and CEO. IARD is proud to be uniting the world’s leading drinks producers with leading online retailers, and e-commerce platforms in raising global standards of responsibility. In coming together, we believe the partnership can facilitate greater change across our wider sectors. We are pleased to welcome JD.com as our first partner in our efforts in the China region, and look forward to working together with them to enhance customer experience and safeguards.”

JD’s partnership with IARD follows the company’s announcement in November of a multi-pronged partnership with Diageo, the world’s largest international alcohol producer.

Mark Edwards, Managing Director of Diageo China, said: “Our brands are made to be enjoyed responsibly. We are therefore very proud of our partnership with JD.com and our joint commitment to provide more information to consumers that will encourage those that choose to consume alcohol to do so in moderation. Our goal is for consumers in China to drink better, not more – and through initiatives such as DRINKiQ with JD.com we believe we can better promote moderation and address harmful use of alcohol.”

As part of its work with IARD and overall commitment to responsible drinking, JD will work with Diageo and other industry partners in China to advance the development of a national code of conduct for responsible sales of alcohol under the principle of self-governance.

About IARD

The International Alliance for Responsible Drinking (IARD) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to addressing harmful drinking worldwide and promoting responsible drinking, amongst those who choose to drink. IARD is supported by its member companies from all sectors of the regulated alcohol industry – beer, wine, and spirits – in their common purpose of being part of the solution to reducing the harmful use of alcohol. For more information on our membership and what we do, please visit http://www.iard.org.

 

 

(ella@jd.com)

 

JD Health Draws Elders Closer to Doctors via Smart Speaker

Posted on by Vivian Yang

by Vivian Yang

Replacing typing with voice and video calls, JD Health introduced tailor-made telehealth services targeted at elderly users on Jan. 28 – an ideal New Year gift for parents during the Spring Festival.

“Using smart phones to exchange text and image messages with online doctors may cause some inconvenience for elderly people,” said Nan Lu, general manager of the “family docter” service  department of JD Health. “So we brought in a smart speaker in our updated service program dedicated to elderly users. With an adaptive interface, they can easily talk and see their family doctors.”

With a customized JD smart speaker as part of the updated gift package for parents, users can use voice commands to activate JD Health’s“family doctor” telehealth service to get 24/7 unlimited medical and health advice.

The AI-based speaker can understand a variety of dialects, ensuring most people living in different areas in China can have a smooth interaction with the system.

By connecting and sharing data from the speaker, users’ adult children can access their parent’s health reports via smartphone. Family doctors can also connect with the children to discuss their parents’ health conditions.

JD Health introduced tailor-made telehealth services targeted at elderly users

“Many people cannot return to their hometowns for a family reunion this year due to the pandemic. The gift package for parents can help them stay connected and accompanied,” said Lu. “We will continue to update the functions of the speaker. For example, in the future, children may use their mobile phones to remotely set pill reminders on the speaker for their parents.”

Elderly users can also use the smart speaker to make easy phone calls with their children, control other home appliances, check weather forecast, and listen to the news, music and entertainment programs.

JD Health's family doctors at work

JD Health’s family doctors at work

JD Health launched the “family doctor” service based on an “internet +healthcare” model in August 2020. This telehealth service is tailored to the needs of an increasing number of Chinese families seeking more timely, consistent and comprehensive healthcare support.

 

(vivian.yang@jd.com)

In-depth Report: The Intelligent Facets of JD Health

Posted on by Yuchuan Wang

by Yuchuan Wang

COVID-19 has stimulated widespread use of advanced technologies in the healthcare industry. Doctors are treating patients through the internet and monitoring their blood pressure remotely by implementing IoT-supported monitors. Robots are being applied in Chinese hospitals to transport medicine to contaminated zones.

According a report by leading U.S. research and consulting firm Frost & Sullivan, the expenditure proportion in the area of digitalization of the Chinese health and wellness market is expected to increase to 10.6% and 24.0% in 2024 and 2030 respectively, from 3.3% in 2019.

JD’s in-door delivery robot works in a hospital in Shanghai to deliver medicine for COVID-19 patients

JD’s in-door delivery robot works in a hospital in Shanghai to deliver medicine for COVID-19 patients

Harnessing technology and supply chain advantages, internet healthcare companies like JD Health, China’s leading telemedicine company, affiliated with JD.com, are reinventing and digitalizing the industry for all participants in the health supply chain.

 

The pharmaceutical supply chain base

China is building a graded diagnosis and treatment system in which medical resources including medicines are encouraged to be distributed through multiple channels. This effort provides fertile soil for the development of telemedicine.

Made possible by its self-built pharmaceutical supply chain, JD Health has developed a closed-loop solution of “seeking medical service + medicine purchase” for patients in China.

Chinese consumers can consult with over 110,000 doctors through JD Health’s platform and purchase the recommended medicine with a click of a button, and have it delivered to their doorsteps. With 11 pharmaceutical warehouses across China, JD can deliver 80% of pharmaceutical orders in 24 hours.

JD has also made efforts to advance the distribution of medicine offline.

Physical pharmacies have faced problems such as lack of bargaining power, paying higher operating and procurement costs at a smaller scale, and having limited market insights. And this is where JD Medicine Procurement comes in.

JD Medicine Procurement (yao.jd.com) is a B2B pharmaceuticals wholesale trading platform which creates an effective digital channel to connect upstream pharmaceutical suppliers and retail drug stores.

“Clients on the platform are mainly one-unit pharmacies, small and medium sized drug stores and clinics under unprecedented pressure in the market competing with larger enterprises,” said Xinyuan Zhou, head of JD Pharmaceutical Procurement and general manager of Channel Innovation at JD Health. “Nearly half of the pharmacies selling on JD are from third and fourth or lower-tier markets.”

JD Medicine Procurement app

JD Medicine Procurement app

Similar to a consumer-facing e-commerce site, marketing campaigns such as flash sales, lucky draws and livestreams are common on the JD Medicine Procurement platform. During a livestream with Venturepharma last July, the pharma sold nearly RMB 2 million yuan in just one hour.

As of the end of 2020, there have been more than 220,000 clients on JD Medicine Procurement, placing a total of over a million orders every month. On Singles Day (Nov.11, 2020), sales of the platform were almost three times that of the same day last year.

“The digital supply chain not only improves of circulation efficiency and the expansion of service scenarios for the healthcare industry, but also further strengthens the relationship between the industry and consumers for rapid growth,” said Zhou.

 

Customized solutions for patients and doctors

JD Health also connect its services with IoT devices and provides a smart health management experience.

Most recently, JD Health released the smart speaker “Family Doctor Guardian Star”. It connects the telemedicine service program “Family Doctor” to the smart device so that customers can use voice commands to call Internet hospital doctors and make face-to-face appointments.

At the CNBC East Tech West conference held in Guangzhou last November, Lijun Xin, CEO of JD Health mentioned another example: When a patient was using an Omron blood pressure meter during exercise, his blood pressure registered as abnormal.

“The patient didn’t know it, but our doctor knew and called him. That’s because the data was immediately transferred from the meter to his doctor through IoT,” said Xin.

Lijun Xin (left), CEO of JD Health and Evelyn Cheng (right), CNBC Beijing correspondent

Lijun Xin (left), CEO of JD Health and Evelyn Cheng (right), CNBC Beijing correspondent

Advanced technologies such as IoT and 5G are already changing the healthcare industry, from health monitoring to disease prevention, to diagnosis, surgery, and daily health management. AI and big data are also contributing to the healthy development of the industry, thanks to JD.

The AI-based prescription review and analysis system “PharmCOO” (pharma chief operating officer) is already being applied in hospitals in Beijing, Hebi, Beihai and other cities. Based on the vast database of pharmaceutical knowledge from the Third Hospital of Peking University, the system can optimize the clinical prescription procedure, thus ensure the safety of patients. Most recently, Haidian district in Beijing announced to build an AI prescription review center with the help of JD Health in November, the center is expected to be Beijing’s first pharmaceutical service platform powered by internet technology.

Lijun Xin, CEO of JD Health (left) and Jintao Li, director of Haidian Health Commission (right) signs agreement in November 2020

Lijun Xin, CEO of JD Health (left) and Jintao Li, director of Haidian Health Commission (right) signs agreement in November 2020

“One of the most important functions of PharmCOO is that it can review a doctors’ prescription before it goes to the pharmacist, and provide assistance for both doctors and pharmacists, making sure there are no contradictions between medication, and correct dosage,” said Dongyuan Wang, general manager of intelligent medical services at JD Health.

“It also has great application value for the improvement of the national health insurance system, for example, by advising the right dosage.”

The income of hospitals in China previously mainly came from drug sales. Driven by financial self-interest, doctors may diagnose as many conditions as possible and over-prescribe. Since 2009, “separation of prescribing and dispensing” has been one of the core tenets of China’s healthcare reformation.

“With PharmCOO, prescriptions will be able to be directed to external pharmacies, be connected with social couriers and delivered to patients’ doorsteps, or circulated to pick-up lockers or community compounds, energizing the retail market and providing convenience for patients,” said Wang.

 

Smart solutions for hospitals

JD Health has also already made it possible to duplicate the “internet + medical treatment” model for offline hospitals, using technologies including cloud computing, AI, IoT and its supply chain ability.

By helping hospitals build a system that integrates medical services and data, JD Health makes it possible for a series of clinic functions such as registration, consultation and prescription and drug purchase to all be done online.

Last December, Nankai-JD Internet Hospital was launched, in collaboration with the AAA hospital Tianjin Nankai Hospital (also known as Tianjin Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine). Patients can enjoy services including revisit and prescription online, and online payment via health insurance. JD’s logistics advantage also enables home delivery of medicines within half of a day.

Patients can also enjoy additional services, such as making an appointment for a health examination, Traditional Chinese Medicine and home service.

Nankai-JD Internet Hospital app

Nankai-JD Internet Hospital app

“We also analyze research data and match the analysis with clinics, thus guiding the upgrade of clinic skills,” said Hongtao Xing from JD Health’s intelligent medical services team.

In Beihai, JD Health will build an electronic health information platform, a health big data center, an electronic health card platform and six applications, including: smart hospitals, smart medical treatment combination, medical supply chain, a smart doctor project, a family doctor project and a public health project.

“For example, by building the electronic health card platform, we hope to get electronic medical record (EMR) and health record combined,” said Xing. “The platform will also break the long existing walls among hospitals, to bring isolated data together for a more digitalized medical system.”

In addition, as early as 2019, JD extended its AI powered customer service to hospitals, and launched the medical care customer service via West China 2nd Hospital (affiliated to Sichuan University) WeChat public account. AI algorithms automatically triage patients based on their descriptions and respond to frequent and repetitive queries, such as how to get a number to line up, which department of the hospital to go to, the doctor’s schedule, and more.

JD Health is making continuous efforts to promote the further use of cutting-edge technologies to innovative the development of the healthcare industry, and to provide more easy-to-access, convenient, high-quality and affordable medical and health products and services.

 

(yuchuan.wang@jd.com)

PG Mall Joins JD Worldwide to Bring Malaysian Products to China

Posted on by Rachel Liu

by Rachel Liu

PG Mall, a leading Malaysian online retailer, joined JD Worldwide on January 27th to directly sell products to Chinese consumers. Over 10,000 sellers and over 1 million products, such as bird’s nest and durian products, will be launched on JD Worldwide in the next few years.

“Since the pandemic outbreak, the global economy has been facing challenges, and Malaysian enterprises are no exception, especially the small enterprises,” said Dato’ Wira Louis Ng, Founder and Executive Chairman of PG Mall. “They need to explore new markets around the world. Through the partnership with JD Worldwide, we would like to help the small enterprises extend their markets and resume operations.”

“We are excited to bring PG Mall on JD Worldwide,” said Luke Liu, general manager of business development of JD Worldwide. “This partnership will allow JD customers to enjoy more local Malaysian products and enrich the product category on JD Worldwide. We will put in more resources and efforts to support overseas merchants to improve their performance in the Chinese market.”

“We are excited to bring PG Mall on JD Worldwide,

PG Mall is a fast-growing ecommerce platform in Malaysia, and has also been ranked as the third most visited online marketplace among foreign-owned online marketplaces in the country by meta-search website iPrice.

This partnership follows JD’s efforts last November to directly source products from popular platforms including Rakuten, Kintetsu, AUTOBACS, SOLETRADER and more. The direct source project allows JD Worldwide to transfer orders to its partners to send products directly from overseas without third-party transit, enabling customers to enjoy authentic, new products from all over the world as quickly as possible. Partners can also add a new sales channel in China with lower cost on logistics and warehousing.

Last December, JD Worldwide also welcomed the Malaysia Overseas Flagship store, under the witness of Malaysian Ambassador to China, Mr. Raja Dato’ Nushirwan Zainal Abidin. The Malaysia Overseas Flagship Store will introduce nearly 1,000 products from over 60 Malaysian brands, such as instant bird’s nest soup, Musang King durian coffee, curry and coconut milk, which are highly popular among Chinese consumers.

Any shopping malls, e-commerce platforms or brands interested in tapping into China’s market through JD Worldwide can apply via https://www.jd.hk/cooperation_en or by emailing worldwide@jd.com.

 

(liuchang61@jd.com)

JD’s Kevin Jiang Talks Fashion’s Digital Transformation on NRF Panel

Posted on by Ella Kidron

by Ella Kidron

According to Kevin Jiang, president of international business, JD Fashion and Lifestyle, in the past year, customers are moving from buying standard and less expensive pieces to more expensive and sophisticated items.

Roughly one year since the outbreak of COVID-19, the global retail industry has been turned on its head. This is particularly true in fashion, which has been one of the hardest hit sectors. COVID-19 is one of factors driving brands – even the most traditional of luxury brands – to go digital. JD, as an e-commerce company backed by a strong supply chain is contributing to this effort to move online, as well as to go omnichannel.

This was the focal point of a panel JD recently participated on during the National Retail Federation (NRF) Chapter One event held entirely online from Jan. 12-22 in place of NRF’s annual Retail’s Big Show. The panel was moderated by Chris Field, a retail analyst and the managing editor of Retail Connections. Jiang, as well as Karin Tracy, Head of Industry, Facebook and Jessica Murphy, Co-founder and Chief Customer Officer, True Fit, were the featured panelists.

Chris Field (top left), Jessica Murphy (bottom left), Karin Tracy (top right), Kevin Jiang (botton right)

Chris Field (top left), Jessica Murphy (bottom left), Karin Tracy (top right), Kevin Jiang (botton right)

The panel emphasized the immense importance of keeping pace with the customer, while making the experience more responsive, engaging and personal.

“Consumer demands are very diversified,” said Jiang. In the first part of last year, at the height of COVID-19, there was a lot of growth for household and grocery products. “Later, as people got used to buying online, they started buying other categories such as luxury products.” Luxury is certainly not one size fits all in terms of consumer preferences. This is part of the reason Jiang and the team at JD focus on building out its offering of top luxury brands, accessible luxury and small, niche designer brands.

Chris Field (left) and Kevin Jiang (right)

Chris Field (left) and Kevin Jiang (right)

Another key element, in addition to product selection, is experience. “In China, we’ve noticed a lot of brands and department stores expanding, but what has changed is that they are shifting from traditional retail to more experience-driven retail.” As Jiang sees it, eventually everything is heading in the direction of the coexistence of online and offline via a well-oriented and integrated omnichannel solution. Although AR/VR technology allows customers to interact with products and have a more personal online experience, they still want to touch and feel the fabric, and understand the brand story and aspiration behind its designs. At the same time, online is extremely convenient, especially for repeat purchases. Combining the two allows for the best of both worlds.There are conveniences on the supply chain side too – integration means better efficiency in terms of inventory turnover.

One of the benefits of the hybrid omnichannel experience is being able to help customers understand more about the brands. Jiang explained that JD worked with top luxury brand Delvaux to bring VIP JD customers to the brand’s flagship stores, effectively helping Delvaux land new customers in-store. Moving forward, JD will look to further analyze consumer behavior and help brands to attract more customers with increased precision.

 

 

(ella@jd.com)

JD Health Gears Up to Ensure Services During Spring Festival

Posted on by Hui Zhang

by Hui Zhang

JD Health is gearing up for the upcoming Spring Festival, which falls on February 12 this year, to ensure that consumers can access doctors and buy medicine during the week-long holiday.

Leveraging its supply chain advantages, JD Health has prepared sufficient pandemic prevention materials to ensure uninterrupted medical supply during this holiday season. Meanwhile, JD Health will continue offering 24/7 online consultation services, which will include free consultation, providing patients with access to medical professionals via telephone and video calls at their conveniences. JD Pharmacy’s offline self-operated stores will remain open as usual to meet consumers’ needs. In addition, JD Health has upgraded its “family doctor” telemedicine service program with medical services that are tailored for easy use by elderly consumers.

Amid a recent uptick in COVID-19 cases that have discouraged people from traveling and in response to JD Health’s goal to provide normal consultation during the holiday, many doctors at JD Health have volunteered to continue working.

Xuejun Du, a TCM doctor with over 10 years of experience, is one of them. For Du, an integral part of her memories of Spring Festival are her mother’s home-cooked fried fish and steamed buns of various shapes. This year, as she won’t have the chance to eat her mother’s traditional dishes , she has decided to spend her time with patients who need her help.

“Whether we are working on the frontline or online, as a doctor, it will give me a great sense of accomplishment if I can help more people during this special time,” said Du.

“We’re all working together to fight against the pandemic in the best ways we each can contribute.”

TCM has been widely recognized as an effective way to relieve related symptoms and an increasing number of patients are flocking to JD Health for TCM consultations. Du believed that by staying on to work during the festival, she can bring peace of mind to her patients— a worthwhile sacrifice.

Zhenyi Zhao, who is the store manager of one of JD Pharmacy’s offline stores in Chengdu, Sichuan province, also volunteered to work during the holiday, as she believes she can provide professional medication instructions to the elderly who lack a grasp of digital technology and medication knowledge.

“Whenever someone about the same age as my parents comes in to buy medicine, I would always like to offer my help. Some of them can’t clearly describe their symptoms, and our professional guidance will help them precisely find the medicine they need,” said Zhao.

With increased restrictions due to the ongoing pandemic, elderly customers are often confused by the extra digital processes required to buy medicines these days, Zhao said.

“I hope my stay during the holiday will offer help to them,” said Zhao.

 

(zhanghui36@jd.com)

Insulated Mug and JD’s Smart Supply Chain

Posted on by Yuchuan Wang

by Yuchuan Wang

Edish is a Yongkang-based insulated mug manufacturer. Since its cooperation with JD Logistics (JDL) in 2018 on warehousing, distribution and smart supply chain, the company’s sales conversion rate has increased by over 30%, and supply chain costs have decreased considerably.

Yongkang, a 5th-tier city located in central  Zhejiang province is widely considered “the hardware capital of China“. While reaching customers thousand miles away is par for the course for Edish thanks to e-commerce, before collaborating with JDL, maintaining high quality service on the logistics side was a challenge.

“We can stock our inventory across seven main regions in China through JD’s self-operated warehouses,” said Yuting Ying, head of e-commerce at Edish. “Once a customer orders our product, it will be dispatched from the nearest warehouse, thus significantly reducing delivery time.” In some cities including Hangzhou, Edish’s orders can even be fulfilled on the same day they are placed, thanks to JD’s efficient logistics system.

JDL also helps Edish forecast sales and manage stock in advance through its smart supply chain system, especially during peak sales seasons like the 618 and Singles Day grand promotions. “This not only helps us solve the problem of out-of-stock during sales seasons but also increases the customer satisfaction rate,” said Ying. “Furthermore, because we have the JD Logistics label in our product descriptions, more customers are choosing to buy Edish out of the trust in JD, which has helped increased sales conversion rates by over 30%.”

Edish’s annual sales amount can reach anywhere between RMB 200 to 300 million yuan now and 80% of sales come from e-commerce channels. In the future, Ying has more ambitious dreams to develop the overseas market.

“And JD Logistics will be my partner as always,” said Ying.

 

(yuchuan.wang@jd.com)