by Kelly Dawson

JD.com’s more than 280,000 employees range from warehouse workers to nation-renowned doctors, with a wide range of backgrounds and areas of expertise. In the next installment of our JDer Lab series, we speak to Jeff Chai, a management trainee in JD’s strategy division.

When Chai graduated from an American university in 2017 with a master’s degree in applied analytics, most of his peers chose to pursue finance or investment banking. But he wanted a different path, one that explored new territory and innovation in an evolving industry. Later that year, he joined JD’s headquarters in Beijing.

“I chose JD because I wanted to challenge myself, and because I wanted to do something different,” he said. “I got what I wanted at JD.”

In his time at China’s largest retailer, Chai has tackled many challenges, but 2020 has been a particularly meaningful year. As COVID-19 has accelerated around the world, JD has participated in various initiatives to support virus-fighting efforts.

“We spent almost 3 weeks, day and night, to generate a final solution to send masks from China to Europe and Latin-America to help them fight COVID-19,” Chai recalled. “Every person’s work, every small challenge was tough to overcome, but with passion and responsibility. I think everyone is proud of what JD did. I think this is how a company shows its social responsibility.”

For Chai, the emotion and pride of realizing the masks had successfully arrived in Europe, and were in the hands of people who could now face the virus safely, contributed to his best day so far at JD.

There have been other highs too, but one thing has remained constant: change. “Here at JD, everyone is used to changes, not only from the inside, but also from the outside world. The world is changing fast, so we have to embrace change.”

In his experience, some companies don’t encourage evolution, or their employees don’t have the confidence to adapt to evolving circumstances. But at JD, those changes are expected. JDers don’t fear change because they are aiming to be pioneers in the industry, Chai said.

This quality defines his colleagues, Chai said—along with intelligence, passion and professionalism. In his first year at JD, his small team did not have quantified KPIs, but every member of the group pushed above and beyond to achieve their goals. They didn’t want to settle for being “working machines” simply going through the motions, he said.

“They wanted to push themselves,” Chai said. “They hoped to do better, not just good. Those are JDers.”

(kellydawson@jd.com)

by Vivian Yang

JD.com is rated as the most trustworthy e-commerce brand, according to a survey of Chinese consumers conducted by iResearch consulting firm. The ranking was released on October 20^th as part of iResearch’s online consumption insights report, which aims to assess brand image among Chinese e-commerce platforms and to better understand the subtle relationship between consumers and these platforms.

The report indicated that 56.56% of respondents tagged JD.com with the keyword of “trustworthy”, which is a much higher rating than other platforms. The other two highest rated keywords for JD.com by consumers are “high-end” and “highly efficient”. This feedback is in line with JD’s long-term commitment to product authenticity and quality, as well as fast delivery and premier after-sales services.

The survey also found that the most popular product categories during this year’s Single’s Day shopping festival will likely be general merchandise and apparel. To encourage consumers to buy things more thoughtfully during the shopping extravaganza, JD will further enhance its services in providing helpful and timely support in the whole shopping process, in order to meet customers’ diversified demands and live up to their trust.

(vivian.yang@jd.com)

by Robin Luo

Based on projections by the data analysis firm Nielsen, JD is expected to be the first choice of consumers buying 3C products (mostly computer, consumer electronics, and communication products) in this year’s Singles Day promotion.

As the annual shopping festival nears, consumers are starting to plan what they want to buy. 3C products are among their top choices. The Nielsen report reveals that although the 3C product market has taken a hit from the pandemic in 2020 H1, there are signs of a gradual recovery since the second quarter.

Home electrics won the favor of more consumers on JD, gaining a 28.9% year-on-year increase in market share.

Why is JD standing out in the crowded 3C products market? The reason is its firm and lasting commitment in promoting better, more innovative services to consumers, analysts said. Additionally, contributing factors to JD’s success in this area are the integration of an omnichannel retail ecosystem, acceleration of digital processes and pushing forward the sinking market strategy, which is a shift toward lower tier markets.  

The report also shows that consumers have now raised their standards for a pleasant buying experience. Besides the basic elements of brand and quality, they also focus on the service they get. To some extent, service has become a new core value of e-commerce.

In 2020, JD has remained in close cooperation with 3C makers, and built a service system that covers the entire sales process. The shopping experience of consumers has been greatly boosted with new features such as one-hour delivery, 30-day insurance, 30-day easy refund and more. These measures have helped JD remain a top choice of consumers in the 3C category, resulting in a leading share of the market.

(press@jd.com)

by Rachel Liu

JD Super, JD’s online supermarket, has formed a tea industry alliance with the local government of Anxi, Fujian province and leading tea brand Bamatea (八马茶业). Anxi is the origin place of Tieguanyin tea, one of the most popular teas in China. Through this partnership, JD will leverage its big data platform to provide digital support for the transformation of the local tea industry. The three sides will also work together to build higher standards and a better environment for the tea industry.

Bamatea will leverage JD’s omnichannel ability by working with JD Daojia, SEVENFRESH, Yihaodian to achieve one-hour delivery in first to fourth tier cities, providing on demand service for customers.

JD Super will provide Bamatea with digitalized solutions and insights on customer profiles and shopping habits, in order to help the firm improve its service and products. In the next five years, Bamatea and JD will also co-build smart warehouses in mid-China to serve thousands of the tea brand’s offline stores.

“Tea is a very important category for JD Super, and it’s an important part of Chinese traditional culture,” said Xiaojun Wang, head of packaged food at JD Super. “As the leading supermarket in China both online and offline, we want to work more closely with our partners to achieve better growth. I believe under the partnership with Bamatea and Anxi government, the sales of Tieguanyin tea on JD will see another round of growth, and we can bring more tasty and healthy tea to our customers.”

JD Super and Bamatea have been partners since 2012. As of 2019, annual sales of Bamatea on JD Super have increased by 60 times. As of September 2020, customers who have become Bamatea’s members on JD have reached 1.05 million. JD Super is one of the fastest growing channels for Bamatea.

(liuchang61@jd.com)

by Rachel Liu

Leading data analysis firm Nielsen released the FMCG Industry Trend Report of January to August 2020 today，October 20^st. Data shows that JD Super, JD’s online supermarket, accounts for over 50% of online market share in multiple categories such as infant formula & diapers, cooking oil, packaged rice, bottled water, wine, sports beverages, vodka, beer, brandy and whisky.

Chinese parents have increasingly high demand for maternal and baby products. JD Super’s vast product choices, commitment to authenticity and comprehensive after-sales service making it the first choice for many Chinese parents to shop with peace of mind. Products that customers traditionally buy online, such as cooking oil, rice and flour, also saw a transfer to online with the impact of COVID-19, and JD Super has become the main shopping platform since the outbreak due to JD’s ability to continuously ensure supply.

JD Super also works closely with many leading brands in the industry. For example, it signed a partnership with popular oil brand Fulinmen (福临门） in September to help the brand sell RMB 15 billion yuan of products in the next three years.

More Chinese consumers choose JD to order heavy products such as beverages and water thanks to the competitive prices and JD’s delivery service directly to their doorsteps. High-end and imported liquors are also getting more popular among young and affluent customers. With JD’s Omnichannel Fulfillment program, customers in some cities in China are now able to receive wine and other beverages in two hours on average, and sometimes in as fast as 30 minutes.

(liuchang61@jd.com)