Prada Partners with JD.com to Expand Digital Presence in China

Posted on by Vic Gu

Iconic luxury brand’s opening of authorized flagship store on JD.com announced as part of e-commerce platform’s June 18 anniversary sales festival

Legendary Italian fashion house Prada Group has formed a partnership with China’s largest retailer, JD.com. As part of the partnership, Prada has opened an authorized flagship store on JD.com on June 17. The partnership was announced as part of JD’s June 18 (“618”) anniversary sales festival.

The new store offers Prada’s upcoming fall/winter collection. As part of the new agreement, Miu Miu and Car Shoe, brands under Prada Group, will also open authorized flagship stores on JD on June 17.

Prada Group’s online business reported double digit growth in 2018 and the company is planning to establish an online presence for all of its sub-brands by the end 2020. Prada’s partnership with JD represents an important part of the company’s digital strategy in the Chinese market.

“Prada is synonymous globally with the highest taste in fashion and luxury, and it is truly an honor to welcome them to our online platform,” said Kevin Jiang, President of International Business at JD Fashion and Lifestyle. “International brands are increasingly recognizing the power of JD when expanding into China’s burgeoning luxury market, and we look forward to helping Prada connect with China’s sophisticated consumers.”

The move comes amidst JD’s annual June 18 anniversary shopping festival, which celebrates the company’s founding. Over the sales event period, consumers enjoy an array of exclusive offers and promotions on a vast range of products, with more than 90 percent of key brands on JD.com launching new items this year.

JD Helps Time Honored Sticky Rice Dumpling Brand Connect With Consumers Over Dragon Boat Festival

Posted on by Rachel Liu

Last week, China celebrated the annual Dragon Boat Festival, during which families gather to eat zongzi – a kind of dumpling made from bamboo-wrapped sticky rice. On June 1, the first day of JD’s June 18 anniversary sales period (“618”), 47 tons of Zongzi were sold on JD.com, China’s largest retailer. Time-honored southern Chinese brand Wu Fang Zhai, renowned across China for their classic rendition of the traditional dish, has seen sales increase repeatedly each year, up 120% year-over-year in 2018 alone. One of the driving factors? The brand has enlisted the help of JD’s data-driven market insights to revamp their offerings to suit certain sections of the market: an example of JD’s “Consumer-to-Manufacturer” (C2M) model in action.

Working with JD, Wu Fang Zhai was able to grow its market share in northern China by adjusting its flavor mix. On the whole, northern Chinese people tend to prefer their zongzi to be sweet, whereas in southern China people tend to eat salty zongzi with meat. As a brand based in China’s southern province of Zhejiang, Wu Fang Zhai’s products are generally salty, so when they wanted to capture more of the market in northern China, they tried launching a gift box containing predominantly sweet zongzi. However, insights from JD revealed that the demand for salty zongzi in northern China was actually increasing, potentially due to more southern Chinese moving there. As a result, the brand adjusted its strategy to introduce products with an equal number of salty and sweet zongzi. The new boxes saw impressive sales performance. In some parts of northern China, sales of the new boxes with an equal number of salty and sweet zongzi were 1.3 times sales of the old boxes with predominantly sweet zongzi.

JD has also helped Wu Fang Zhai adjust its packaging. The e-commerce giant’s insights led Wu Fang Zhai to introduce a new, larger, heavier and more impressive set of zongzi, packaged in bamboo-made boxes in place of the normal paper boxes, and including a variety of other food such as duck eggs and stewed duck meat. The new gift box weighs 1500g, heavier than the usual 1000g boxes, which are seen as not heavy enough to impress relatives in certain cities. Last year, sales of the new packages of zongzi were four times the number of the traditional paper packaged boxes sold at the same price.

When Wu Fang Zhai started to work with JD back in 2015, JD’s logistics strength was a huge draw for them. JD’s ability to deliver 90% of orders same- or next-day means that customers can order their zongzi just one or two days before the day of the festival – a convenience that simply cannot be matched by other e-commerce platforms. This remains the case today.

“Wu Fang Zhai’s zongzi are eaten in homes all over China during Dragon Boat Festival, and JD.com is privileged to work with such a time-honored brand to better fulfill the needs of consumers,” said Lizhen Liu, Head of Packaged Foods at JD FMCG. “Customers across the country increasingly realize that ordering Wu Fang Zhai products on JD is the best way to ensure their zongzi are both delivered on time before the festival, and are tailored to meet their needs.”

“JD.com’s unrivaled insights into the market have been an amazing help in preparing our products for our busiest time of the year,” said Jing Zhang, Head of E-commerce at Wu Fang Zhai.

“A historic brand such as Wu Fang Zhai is fortunate to be renowned for the quality of our products, but JD’s deep understanding of the e-commerce market, consumer preferences, and its strength in supply chain logistics has allowed us to provide our customers with a better product experience this Dragon Boat Festival than ever before.”

JD is conducting a joint marketing campaign with Wu Fang Zhai for this Dragon Boat Festival, with the brand also participating in JD’s June 18 “618” anniversary sales event.

JD Plus Members Gain Exclusive Benefits at 15,000 Hotels Worldwide

Posted on by Yuchuan Wang

China’s largest retailer JD.com recently announced that subscribers of its premium membership program, “JD Plus”, will now enjoy exclusive privileges at 15,000 high-end hotels around the world, as part of the leading e-commerce platform’s June 18 “6.18” anniversary sales event.

Starting this week, JD Plus members can receive exclusive discounts, lounge privileges, extra loyalty points, and much more from 19 selected global hotel brands, including InterContinental Hotels and Resorts, AccorHotels, The Ascott Limited (Ascott), and Wanda Hotels and Resorts.

Marking the first time benefits provided by JD’s premium membership program can be enjoyed abroad, the new set of member privileges at hotel brands is the latest example of JD Plus’ evolution into an elite membership program that offers both e-commerce-related advantages (such as faster accrual of “JingDou” points that can be exchanged for discounts on the JD platform) and a broad range of cross-industry lifestyle benefits.

The hotel partnerships join other recent additions to JD Plus’s lifestyle offerings, including bundled memberships with key partners including Sam’s Club, iQIYI, and Zhihu, as well as a constantly growing range of discounts and exclusive offers on travel bookings, restaurant meals, healthcare services, wealth management products, and more.

“With these new partnerships, we are taking the reach of the JD Plus program global and cementing our position as the go-to membership program for the sophisticated Chinese consumer,” said Chunhui Meng, Head of JD Plus. “This significant expansion of JD Plus’s lifestyle-related benefits is the perfect way to reward and retain our most loyal customers as we celebrate JD’s ‘6.18’ anniversary.”

“JD Plus members value quality lifestyle and good service, which aligns perfectly with Wanda Hotels and Resorts’ mission. We are excited to invite JD Plus members to enjoy our Wanda Club’s Gold card benefits,” said Adeline Yong, Deputy General Manager at Wanda Hotels and Resorts. “We believe JD Plus members will appreciate the luxurious experience and warm service at our hotels and hope they will enjoy their stay with us.”

Among some of the benefits that top hotels will provide as part of the partnership, Wanda Hotels and Resorts will offer its Gold membership benefits to JD Plus members, in addition to executive lounge access; while Le Club AccorHotels will offer JD Plus members triple Rewards when they book and stay at participating Accor hotels. InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) Rewards Club has an instant upgrade offer for JD Plus members to enjoy Gold Elite member status on a first-come-first-served basis during JD’s 6.18 shopping festival period this year. Members can enjoy various hotel benefits across 5,600 hotels from various IHG hotel brands globally, including up to 15% off on room rates, an additional 10% in bonus points, priority check-in, and extended check-out, among other benefits.

Since JD.com became the first e-commerce company in China to introduce a paid membership service in 2016, JD Plus has grown to boast a highly loyal membership of over 10 million. JD Plus members tend to be young and affluent consumers who are willing to pay extra for quality services, making them a highly attractive demographic for brands seeking high value customers. According to data collected by JD, more than 65% of JD Plus members are under the age of 35; nearly 60% live in first and second tier cities; and 89% have earned a bachelor’s degree or above.

Mowi China and JD.com to Launch New Fresh Salmon Products in China

Posted on by Yuchuan Wang

Mowi China will launch fresh salmon for the first time to mainland China on JD.com. Leveraging both parties’ extensive consumer insights about the market, Mowi China has worked with China’s largest retailer to launch four brand new salmon offerings during JD’s June 18 anniversary sales festival period.

The products will come directly from Mowi China’s newly established factory in Shanghai – its first ever in mainland China. Chinese consumer demand for salmon has risen significantly in recent years. According to internal data, salmon sales on JD’s platform in 2018 increased by 100% over the previous year, with “salmon” being the most searched term within JD’s fish category. With the factory in Shanghai, Mowi China will offer fresh salmon products to JD.com for the first time.

Mowi China has worked closely with JD.com for this launch of new products in mainland China, benefitting from JD’s unparalleled data-driven insights into Chinese consumers to develop four new, fresh salmon offerings tailored to local tastes and consumption trends.

Working with JD, Mowi China identified evidence of demand for easy-to-cook products in China not being met. To capture this demand, Mowi China has introduced salmon with accompanying sauces (the first two of which are with Sichuan style spicy sauce and classic lemon butter sauce). Sauce paired products are primarily aimed at millennials in large cities who are too busy to cook or lack cooking skills.

Mowi China is also launching frozen salmon cubes aimed at families with young children based on JD’s insights that more families are buying salmon for their children. By removing the skin and bones, the product delivers the full health benefits of salmon, including high levels of omega-3 essential for healthy growth in infants, in a safe-to-eat format while saving precious time for busy parents.

The fourth new product introduced by Mowi China on JD.com is a premium fresh salmon portion farmed and delivered directly from one of Mowi’s overseas farming operations in Norway, Scotland, Chile, Faroe Island and Canada.  The salmon will arrive in China within 72 hours after it is harvested and be processed in Mowi China’s Shanghai factory. Mowi’s integrated value chain together with JD’s world-leading cold chain logistics network is key to providing guaranteed shelf life, freshness and quality for JD customers.

“As Chinese consumers have become busier and more health-conscious, they are welcoming high-quality seafood products that are delicious and quick to prepare,” said Emily Zhang, Commercial Manager of Mowi China. “As we open our first processing facility in mainland China to expand in the hugely promising mainland Chinese market, we are confident that JD’s deep understanding of Chinese consumers and unparalleled logistics network make them the perfect partner for us.”

“With our commitment to providing the freshest, highest quality products possible for our consumers, we are excited to further strengthen our partnership with Mowi China,” said Max Cao, General Manager of Seafood Procurement at JD.com. “Busy and sophisticated JD shoppers will jump at the chance to purchase these delicious, tailor-made new offerings of top quality salmon, with quality and delivery assured by JD’s signature in-house logistics and cold chain network.”

JD Logistics Simplifies the Loyalty Rewards Process for Banks

Posted on by Ling Cao

China CITIC Bank has tapped Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com to be its exclusive delivery provider for gifts sent to China CITIC’s credit and debit cardholders as part of the leading Chinese financial institution’s loyalty points program. The move significantly streamlines the process for China CITIC, cutting average delivery time to customers from 5.5 days to 2.5 days across China, increasing efficiency by more than 100%.

China CITIC works with several different gift suppliers in order to ensure a wide assortment of products for its customers to choose from. Users simply log onto the bank’s “Points Mall” to exchange their loyalty points for a qualifying gift of their choice. In the past, logistics to get gifts into the hands of customers (including choice of delivery provider) were managed by each individual gift supplier. Working with JD Logistics, the gift suppliers now send gifts to the JD warehouse located nearest to them, and JD’s in-house delivery service handles last mile delivery to customers all across the country. JD has also helped China CITIC maximize their brand exposure by creating attractive gift packaging featuring the China CITIC logo.

“We’re honored that China CITIC Bank has entrusted JD with the delivery of gifts to their most loyal cardholders,” said Wei Tang, Head of Key Account Management at JD Logistics. “Leveraging over a decade of experience in logistics, from warehousing down to last mile delivery to the customer, we are able to help partners in a wide range of industries significantly streamline the fulfillment process, improve efficiency and increase customer satisfaction.”

JD’s partnership with China CITIC Bank is the latest example of its Retail as a Service (RaaS) strategy in the financial services sector. Under RaaS, JD is leveraging its significant experience in logistics, from fulfillment to delivery, as well as technology and other capabilities, in order to enable partners in other industries to improve efficiency and reduce costs.  JD now provides logistics support to 70% of China’s state-owned and joint-stock banks. The company has also previously leveraged its capabilities to increase the efficiency of supply chain and replenishment solutions for offline bookstores and to provide cloud warehouse solutions to small and medium businesses.

Hungarian Sweet Wine Producer Grand Tokaj Chooses JD for China E-Commerce Debut

Posted on by Rachel Liu

Discerning wine connoisseurs on JD.com are now able to sample an exciting range of Hungarian sweet wines, thanks to a new partnership between the Chinese e-commerce giant and leading Hungarian winery Grand Tokaj.

Grand Tokaj’s partnership with JD marks the winery’s first foray into the world of Chinese e-commerce. JD will assist the brand with marketing activities and help customize products for the Chinese market through insights provided by JD’s big data analysis. JD’s self-developed nationwide logistics network will further ensure a majority of customers receive their wine on either the same day or the day after placing their order.

Hungarian government-backed Grand Tokaj is the largest winery in Hungary’s historic Tokaj-Hegyalja Wine Region. The sweetness of wines such as Grand Tokaj’s “Tokaji Aszú” range comes from the region’s usage of partially raisined grapes, a traditional process known as ‘noble rot’ which dates back to 1630.

Grand Tokaj’s products have already been well-received by JD’s customers. 1,000 bottles of the winery’s signature Tokaji Aszú were snapped up within the first 10 hours of the brand’s promotional launch period held from April 17 to 22. The brand’s online store attracted over 400,000 followers on the day of its launch alone, a faster accumulation of fans than any other alcohol brand on JD.com apart from baijiu giant Moutai.

JD’s analysis indicates that over three quarters of Chinese customers prefer wine from abroad, especially women, younger consumers and those living in first and second tier cities.

“JD.com is honored to be Grand Tokaj’s first choice online platform for the introduction of their sophisticated sweet wine to the Chinese market,” said Carol Fung, president of JD FMCG. “The Chinese wine market is burgeoning with potential, and demand for high-quality imported wine is increasing. As China’s leading wine retailer, we are excited to further leverage our resources and bring greater choice to Chinese wine fans thirsty for a unique experience.”

“JD.com has an impressive history of bridging the gap between global wine brands and Chinese consumers, and we’re looking forward seeing the results of this new partnership,” said Gergely Goreczky, CEO of Grand Tokaj. “The introduction of Grand Tokaj products on JD serves as the ideal introduction to Hungary’s rich and varied tradition of wine-making for Chinese consumers. JD’s expertise in online marketing and logistics will ensure that customers receive a superior level of service consistent with the care we put into the making of our wines.”

For the last three years JD.com has consistently ranked as the leading online retailer for alcoholic beverages, and alcohol sales on JD have increased by a factor of ten within the past six years. More than twenty alcohol brands achieved sales of more than 100 million RMB in 2018 on the JD platform, with sales of Moutai surpassing 1 billion RMB.

JD helps alcoholic beverage brands develop in the market through a holistic strategy including CRM solutions, online and offline retail channels and its unique Customer-to-Manufacturer (C2M) initiatives designed to meet the evolving demands of consumers through customized product offerings. In 2017, Rémy Cointreau Group launched a special, smaller-sized cognac bottle on JD.com based on JD’s user behavior analysis. This smaller bottle was developed specifically for JD’s customers, and sold out quickly when it was first launched online during the 2017 Singles’ Day Shopping Festival. By the end of 2018, the product was one of the best-selling items among all Rémy Cointreau Group’s products on JD.com.

JD.com Delivers New Zealand’s First Kiwifruit and Apple Harvests of the Year

Posted on by Yuchuan Wang

JD.com, China’s largest retailer, is bringing this year’s first kiwifruit and apple harvests from New Zealand to Chinese consumers, further strengthening its partnerships with market leaders Zespri and Rockit Global Limited.

The horticultural companies’ high-quality kiwifruit and snack-sized apples have already proven enormously popular among JD’s more than 300 million customers, who are increasingly buying imported produce. JD data shows that overseas fruits accounted for the majority of all fruit sales on JD’s platforms in 2018, up from just 20% two years earlier. Those who favor buying imported fruits are usually younger, middle-class consumers with a strong focus on their personal health and nutrition.

In recent years, New Zealand’s fruit exports to China have soared to reach NZ$606 million. On JD, sales of New Zealand-produced fresh food grew by over 80% in 2018.

A JD courier delivered an order of premium kiwifruit to a lucky customer, accompanied by a Zespri representative

A JD courier delivered an order of premium kiwifruit to a lucky customer, accompanied by a Zespri representative

Kiwifruit are the country’s single biggest fruit export worldwide, with China ranked as the top market. The local industry currently supports about 18,000 jobs across New Zealand, including 2,600 kiwifruit growers.

Zespri first set up a flagship store on JD.com in 2017. By expanding its cooperation with JD including selling through 7FRESH, JD’s offline grocery store, the global kiwifruit exporter is able to further leverage the world-class capabilities offered by China’s biggest and most advanced e-commerce cold-chain logistics network.

“JD.com is the ideal partner for Zespri to continue growing our distribution footprint in the country,” said Ivan Kinsella, Head of China Corporate Affairs at Zespri. “Their unparalleled logistics network will ensure that our high-quality kiwifruit always arrive to our Chinese customers in the best condition, giving them a fantastic eating experience.” 

In addition, Rockit Global Limited has just launched an exclusive flagship store for Rockit apples on JD.com. At the beginning of New Zealand’s apple production season, these nutritious fruits have also been introduced to both JD’s online and offline customers.

China is the most important market for Rockit Global Limited. Chinese consumers’ demand for top-quality produce overall continues to rise quickly. According to JD data, college educated millennials account for more than 40% of Rockit apple’s customers in China, with most hailing from Beijing, Guangdong, and Shanghai.

“Rockit Global Limited is thrilled to have joined forces with JD.com,” said Austin Mortimer, CEO of Rockit Global Limited. “With over 300 million customers and same- and next-day delivery ability, JD is undoubtedly the best partner for us bring our premium quality, New Zealand-grown apples to Chinese dining tables.”

As Chinese consumers’ appetites for fresh food grows, JD has leveraged its global reach and outstanding cold-chain logistics expertise to make sure that they can easily buy the highest quality fresh products. The e-commerce giant currently sources items from over 50 countries and regions, offering more than 110,000 imported fresh products to customers. Its nationwide cold chain logistics network covers 300 cities across China.

“We’re very pleased to further our partnerships with Zespri and Rockit Global Limited,” said Xiaozhou Zhou, leader of the fresh fruit team at 7FRESH, JD.com’s fresh food division. “Chinese consumers overwhelmingly favor JD.com as the best place to buy fresh products imported from abroad. We can’t wait to bring more of these healthy and naturally delicious New Zealand fruits to them.”

“We look forward to seeing even more wonderful fresh products from New Zealand find their way onto JD’s platform so that they can easily reach families across China,” said Andrew White, Trade Commissioner from New Zealand Trade and Enterprise. “These fresh brands will complement the wide range of New Zealand products that are already developing a strong following through JD, such as infant formula, honey, health products and even cosmetics.”

JD Business Offering Demystifies Procurement Process

Posted on by Yuchuan Wang

China’s largest retailer JD.com is offering enterprises of all sizes an easy way to meet all of their procurement needs. JD Business, JD’s procurement channel for enterprises to buy office supplies and services, MRO (maintenance, repair and operations) product and more, streamlines the procurement process for brands, providing a one-stop shop solution. Working with JD Business has helped companies improve procurement efficiency by 50% on average, decreasing comprehensive procurement costs by 15%. JD currently has more than seven million enterprise clients.

The traditional procurement process is very opaque, and requires having individual relationships with different suppliers to meet each business need. It also often involves leafing through a large book of different suppliers, and then requiring procurement teams to meet with prospective suppliers in person. JD simplifies the process by enabling enterprise customers to access a range of different products from different suppliers on a single platform. Importantly, as China’s trusted retailer for authentic products, JD’s system is designed from the ground up to bring an unprecedented level of transparency to the procurement process.

JD Business offers solutions to suit enterprises of all sizes. For small and medium enterprises, which have an unstable lifecycle and often a lot of movement within the organization, JD Business provides a transparent channel (b.jd.com) for procurement. This means that anyone who comes into the procurement role at a company has a clear record of invoicing and pricing information.

JD also works with more than 5,000 large companies, and can embed JD Business’ service into their existing ERP systems. Over 80% of companies in China on the Fortune 500 list have cooperated with JD Business for their procurement needs. A more recent addition to JD’s enterprise support portfolio is its MRO-specific procurement channel (imall.jd.com). Partners of JD Business cover a wide range of industries and include the likes of Volvo, Siemens and Bosch.

“We have spent several years understanding the needs of enterprise customers, and figuring out how to best serve them,” said Chunzheng Song, Head of JD Business. “Our extensive logistics network, relationships with suppliers and advanced technology put us in a position to meet the demand from businesses of all sizes.”

Volvo and Southwest Cement are recent beneficiaries of working with JD Business. Embedding JD’s procurement platform with Volvo’s supplier relationship management (SRM) system enabled Volvo to decrease its procurement cycle from three weeks to a few days. Working with Southwest Cement, JD leveraged its resources in supply chain and logistics to provide a one-click procurement solution enabling the company to lower procurement costs by 20%.

Volvo Automobile Asia Pacific

In 2018, JD Business signed a cooperation agreement with Volvo Automobile Asia Pacific to become Volvo’s first PunchOut and E-ordering smart procurement partner in the Asia-Pacific region. Embedding JD’s procurement platform with Volvo’s supplier relationship management (SRM) system has enabled real-time transparent flow of procurement management data, and has fully digitalized the procurement system, greatly reducing errors. As a result, Volvo has been able to decrease the procurement cycle from three weeks to a few days.

“Cooperating with JD.com has significantly improved the quality of our procurement visualization, enabling us to make transparent and efficient decisions,” said Hai Li, Vice President of Procurement at Volvo Automobile Asia Pacific. “In particular, the transformation of our procurement process has enabled our indirect procurement to become a value creation center.”

Southwest Cement

Southwest Cement is another of JD’s enterprise clients who has benefitted as a result of transitioning its procurement process. The company’s cement production capacity is about 100 million tons, and its production process requires a lot of industrial materials. In the past, Southwest Cement would procure materials from many different suppliers. JD leveraged its resources in supply chain and logistics to provide a one-click procurement solution enabling the company to buy thousands of products at reasonable prices. As a result of going online with JD, Southwest Cement has been able to lower procurement costs by 20%. In addition, thanks to JD Logistics’ extensive network, it takes just 36 hours for Southwest Cement to get their supplies after placing an order.

“Working with JD has drastically simplified our procurement process,” said Jun Zhang, Head of Supply at Southwest Cement. “In the past, our procurement managers would work with a bunch of individual suppliers to meet all of our procurement needs. This was a very time consuming and labor-intensive process. Now, we are able to get all of the supplies we need from a single place, delivered in record time.”