Sales Soar for Sportswear Brand Erke on JD.com After Flood Relief Donation

Posted on by Hui Zhang

by Hui Zhang

Sales of Erke, a Chinese sportswear brand, surged by over 520% on JD.com on July 23rd, the first day of JD’s promotion campaign on sports related products, after the brand donated RMB 50 million yuan ($7.71 million) worth of relief supplies and other aid to the flood-stricken Henan province.

Sales of Erke products spiked after the brand announced a RMB 50-million-yuan donation to Henan on Chinese social media last week. The brand received wide support from across China, as many Chinese netizens were moved by the company’s kind act. Many netizens expressed support, in addition to concern for whether the domestic company’s sales performance could support such a large donation.

“It seems like you might go out of business, because you donated so much,” one netizen commented. Some consumers even chose to pay extra money when purchasing products at offline store locations, despite salespeople at the stores advising against irrational consumption. The host of an Erke livestream event also called on consumers to spend rationally, but many consumers commented that they were happy to spend “wildly” so as to support the brand.

Erke’s sales spike is not an isolated case, as JD’s data shows that the overall sales of domestic sports brands increased by more than 280% from July 22 to July 23 YOY, with running shoes, basketball shoes, pants and T-shirts ranking among the top categories in terms of sales volume. This growth has been attributed by some experts to increased interest in sports due to the ongoing Tokyo Olympic games.

In addition to Erke, domestic sports brands including Anta Sports, 361 Degrees, and PEAK also embraced significant sales growth of more than 500% during this period.

Beijing, Shanghai, Chengdu, Shenzhen and Guangzhou became the top five cities with the highest sales of domestic sports brands on JD, with sales in Beijing reaching 530% YOY, and even reaching 750% YOY in Shanghai.

“Thanks to JD.com’s reputation for guaranteed authenticity and fast delivery services, it has become the go-to destination for consumers to buy sports brands both internationally and domestically,” said a spokesperson from JD Sports.

 

(zhanghui36@jd.com)

JD.com and Geely Form Partnership in Smart Logistics

Posted on by Yuchuan Wang

by Yuchuan Wang

JD.com and Geely signed a partnership agreement on Jul. 26 stating that the automotive company will leverage JD.com’s integrated supply chain abilities for its business and cooperate in supply chain consulting, intelligent forecasting, omni-channel warehousing, internal logistics, smart warehousing, commercial vehicle technology opening-up and more.

Based on the partnership, the two parties will fully leverage each other’s advantages in terms of supply chain, smart logistics, technology research and development.

JD says that it will explore how its service capabilities will contribute to helping Geely lower procurement cost and improve operations efficiency in the areas of omni-channel sales, digital procurement and more.

Geely says that with the rapid development of electric and intelligent vehicles reshaping the global automobile industry, the company will continue to adhere to an open and shared mentality to build the industrial alliance and ecosystem.

As a technology and service enterprise with supply chain at the core, JD.com has been dedicated in opening up its technology, supply chain and infrastructure to industry partners.

Geely Holding Group is an industry-leading global innovative technology group involved in service of vehicles, as well as digital technology, financial services, education and more.

 

(yuchuan.wang@jd.com)

JD Cloud’s Data Center Awarded as Carbon-Reduction Innovator

Posted on by Vivian Yang

by Vivian Yang

JD Cloud won an innovation award for its low-carbon data center in Suqian of Jiangsu province and has been certified as an excellent carbon disclosure internet and tech company in the latest evaluation of data centers’ carbon emission performance organized by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT), publicity center of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and the Open Data Center Committee (ODCC) on July 13th in Beijing.

“The fast development of digital transformation in many industries has driven up energy consumption for data centers,” said Liqiang Gao, president of JD Cloud. “We have been adopting technological innovation and clean energy in operating JD’s data centers across China to go digital and green in our carbon reduction efforts.”

JD Cloud has taken measures in four main areas to cut its data center carbon emission, including improving power usage effectiveness (PUE) by adopting frequency conversion products in all water pumps and fans; careful disposal of waste water and batteries; adoption of photovoltaic and solar power in its industrial parks and self-developing high-performance liquid-cooled servers, and equipping IoT devices at scale to optimize the efficiency of the electric system and more.

In recent years JD has been committed to sustainability, as outlined in its recent ESG report published earlier this year, and as early as 2018, in its Sustainability Report 2018-2020.  In October 2019, JD Logistics announced to join Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), becoming the first Chinese logistics company to join this initiative. In November 2020, it made the commitment to reduce 50% carbon emissions by 2030, a target that has been approved and listed on SBTi’s website.

 

(vivian.yang@jd.com)

Posted in ESG

SEVEN FRESH Opens Fourth Store in Chengdu Inside Subway Station

Posted on by Ling Cao

by Ling Cao

JD’s omni-channel supermarket chain SEVEN FRESH opened a new store in Chengdu on July 23rd, making it the fourth location in the city and the chain’s first subway storefront, located inside Chengdu’s Shijicheng subway station.

The store will offer fresh vegetables and fruits, seafood, local delicacies, ready-to-cook dishes and baked food developed by SEVEN FRESH.

During the opening ceremony, the Chengdu store offered a wide range of discounts to customers, providing them with a superior fresh produce shopping experience.

Helson Zheng, head of SEVEN FRESH shared, “SEVEN FRESH has built a strong supply chain network that connects delicious food from all over the world in one place. Using various cooking methods developed by our team as well as fast delivery service, we hope customers can enjoy the instant and convenient in-store and online shopping.”

JD plans to open a fifth store of SEVEN FRESH in Chengdu in late September.

In recent three months the chain opened three stores in Shenzhen, as part of SEVEN FRESH’s overall plan to focus on major regions in China. Zheng said that SEVEN FRESH will keep the expansion momentum over the next three years.

 

(ling.cao@jd.com)

JD Puts Logistics Drones in Henan for Disaster-Relief

Posted on by Yuchuan Wang

by Yuchuan Wang

JD’s self-developed logistics drone was dispatched from Xi’an to Henan province and put into use since Jul. 22 to deliver emergency needs in Xinxiang, a flood-stricken city to the north of Zhengzhou, Henan province as the rain in Central China continues to strike the region.

In addition to facilitating the transportation of goods, JD’s rescue drones were also used in Zhongmou county of Zhengzhou, to help survey the flood.

A JD logistics drone takes off in Xinxiang on Jul. 22

JD.com initiated emergency support for Henan province since Jul. 21 including donation of raincoats, rubber shoes, spades, instant noodles, mineral water and more to local people.

On February 16 of last year, JD.com flied its two drones to spray disinfectant in the High-Tech Industrial Development Zone of Ordos City, an important industrial city of Inner Mongolia, China. There will be more scenarios in which drones may play a non-substitutable role.

 

(yuchuan.wang@jd.com)

Donations from JD’s Warehouses in Henan Reach Stranded Passengers and Hospital Patients

Posted on by Vivian Yang

by Vivian Yang

On July 21st, JD Logistics delivered over 540 boxes of food and mineral water from its nearby warehouses to Tielu train station in Zhengzhou, Henan province, where hundreds of passengers have been stranded on the railway for more than 40 hours due to the ongoing massive floods in the region.

The train K226/7 left Zhengzhou headed for Lanzhou of Gansu province in the afternoon of July 19th, but service was suspended not long after departure due to the flooding. The ferocious storm cut off all rescue channels around the station, posing grim challenges to railway staff attempting to provide necessities for the stranded passengers.

JD Logistics’ local team contacted station head Yabin Zhang shortly after learning what was happening, and quickly sourced and delivered supplies from its warehouses close to the station, providing much needed relief for the hungry and tired passengers.

“Thank you so much,” wrote Zhang in his Wechat communication with the JD courier in charge of this mission. “I just want to express our gratitude on behalf of all the passengers on K227.”

Donations from JD’s Warehouses to train

Donations from JD’s Warehouses to train

On the same day, another batch of rescue supplies from JD’s local warehouses were sent to designated hospitals in Henan. It is estimated that there are over 5,000 medical workers and patients stranded at the No.1 Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine; and 4,000 at the No. 5 Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University. JD’s timely delivery of relief supplies has greatly alleviated their urgent needs.

JD’s timely delivery of relief supplies has greatly alleviated their urgent needs.

JD’s Warehouses vans

JD is China’s largest retailer with an extensive logistics infrastructure including a network of around 1,000 warehouses across the country. Since 2012, the company has abided by a rule that if a disaster happens anywhere in the country, the nearest JD warehouse should immediately donate and deliver its goods to meet the emergency demands. The manager in charge of the warehouse is entitled to make such a decision on the ground without waiting for approval from upper management.

In order to reduce operating pressures for merchants from Henan on JD’s platform, the company also announced 10 supportive measures on July 22nd to help tide them over during this difficult time while maintaining business operation. These measures include a number of operating fee exemptions on JD.com, including exemption from penalties for product delivery delays, and offering merchants employer liability insurance at no cost, and more.

(vivian.yang@jd.com)

Posted in ESG

JD’s Rescue Supplies Rush to Rain-Ravaged Henan from Local Warehouses

Posted on by Vivian Yang

by Vivian Yang

JD.com initiated emergency support for the central China province of Henan on July 21st as heavy downpours continued to lash the region.

Over 20 trucks of rescue supplies donated by JD and transported from JD Logistics’ closest warehouse arrived in Henan on the second day of the heavy rainfall, including raincoats, rubber shoes, spades, instant noodles, mineral water and more.

Over 20 trucks of rescue supplies donated by JD and transported from JD Logistics’

JD Retail launched a dedicated service hotline for customers and merchants in order to provide emergency goods coordination.

JD Health opened a free 24-hour hotline for local people’s medical consultation, and sourced and donated healthcare supplies for disinfection, epidemic prevention, mosquito prevention, treatment of wounds and anti-inflammation.

AllianzJD, JD’s insurance arm and a joint venture with German’s Allianz, has also opened a green channel for 24-hour claims settlement and rescue services for clients in Henan.

AllianzJD, JD’s insurance arm and a joint venture with German’s Allianz, has also opened a green channel for 24-hour claims settlement and rescue services for clients in Henan.

Many touching scenes of JD couriers have been captured by Internet users as they lend their hands in helping the local community in escorting children and elderly people wading in the water, or pushing cars out of the deep puddles.

In 2012, JD.com’s founder Richard Liu announced a company regulation stating that if a disaster happens anywhere in the country, the nearest JD warehouse should immediately donate and transport its goods to meet the emergency demands and that the management of any such warehouse would not need to obtain prior approval.

(vivian.yang@jd.com)

Posted in ESG

JD News Roundup Vol. 13: Givenchy, Beyond Meat and a JD.com Pay Raise

Posted on by Kelly Dawson

Welcome to Volume 13 (June 21 – July 19) of our 2021 weekly digest. Here we consolidate a selection of JD news regularly and give context on why it matters. If you have any questions or topics you are hoping we will explore, please email press@jd.com.

 

BUSINESS HIGHLIGHTS

 

JD.com to boost employees’ salaries

JD will increase employee’s annual salaries to the equivalent of 16-months pay over the next two years, from the current 14 months (including annual bonuses). The announcement has been interpreted as a show of financial strength and solidarity with the e-commerce giant’s employees.

 

JD Logistics

Shenzhen-based British YouTubers Lee and Oli Barrett recently toured JD.com’s Asia No. 1 highly automated logistics warehouse in Beijing, which processes more than 800,000 customer orders per day. Check out their video of that visit on their YouTube channel, or via bilibili. The Barretts have amassed hundreds of thousands of followers across YouTube and other social media platforms.

 

JD Retail

Givenchy, a luxury fashion and perfume house under LVMH, launched a beauty flagship store on JD.com on July 15th, aiming to bring its range of high-quality cosmetics to a wider range of consumers in China. This year JD has also welcomed LVMH brands Louis Vuitton and Berluti, connecting the brands with the e-commerce platform’s more than 500 million active users.

Popular plant-based meat-maker Beyond Meat has opened its first e-commerce channel in China on JD.com, offering a variety of its nutritious plant-based products including Beyond Beef™, the Beyond Burger® and Beyond Pork™ to four major cities including Beijing and Shanghai, with plans to expand to 300 cities.  General manager of JD Fresh James Ye told Reuters that the platform has observed a rapid increase in attention to healthy diet and lifestyle among Chinese consumers. “Via our long-established advantages in supply chain, cold chain logistics, retail and omni-channels, we hope to bring Beyond Meat’s healthy and high-quality products to Chinese consumers.”

JD Original, JD.com’s private brand initiative, will provide customers with products directly from manufacturers through the end-to-end digital supply chain management service offered by the C2M (consumer-to-manufacturer) business under Li & Fung Limited, the world’s leading supply chain solutions partner for consumer brands and retailers. Together the two parties are creating a multi-category collection that includes homeware, pet products and more.

A total of 2,437 ENOVATE EM5 electric cars were pre-ordered on JD Auto through a one-month long crowdfunding campaign ended on July 13th. The campaign successfully reached the minimum number of orders required to manufacture the JD Auto-customized vehicles. Participants only needed to pay a deposit of RMB 618 yuan to ensure a discounted price when the cars become available for purchase, and will receive gift services worth 40,000 yuan including a charging station, lifetime warranty of the key parts and more. About 85% of buyers during the campaign were aged between 22 to 41 years old. As competition escalates in China’s EV market, more and more young consumers are focusing on car performance itself when making purchases.

 

JD Health

JD Health has helped the Suqian municipal government launch a medical security information platform by integrating data with the city’s 3,347 medical institutions (including hospitals and pharmacies), to offer convenient medical services for local residents. The construction of the platform is part of the Chinese government’s efforts to address a series of issues such as cross-location medical insurance settlement.

 

JD Technology

JD Cloud released a series of products during the JD Cloud Summit on July 13th, including the industry’s first hybrid cloud operation system named “Yunjian,” which can achieve integrated management and allocation of digital infrastructure. Additionally, JD Cloud released the first fully-opened PaaS ecosystem in the industry, aiming to create an “android system” in the cloud computing area. Thirty companies will join for the first phase.

 

Have a bit more time? Check out some of these reads:

 

Social commerce bridging digital gap for Indonesians:  Even as Indonesia’s e-commerce industry has accelerated during the pandemic, a combination of factors continues to hamper widespread adoption. JD.com’s joint e-commerce venture in Indonesia JD.ID is bridging the digital gap through social commerce programs like JD Fans.

JD Catering is reshaping the restaurant supply chain:  Leveraging JD’s comprehensive e-commerce platform and logistics advantages, JD Catering is now providing restaurants with not only supply fulfillment, but also a one-stop supply chain solution covering product supplies, warehousing and delivery, food certification, catering cooperation and even food R&D.

New branding, same philosophy: JD.com’s joint venture in Thailand JD CENTRAL is updating its branding with a new slogan that expands beyond its current branding of “Authentic Products,” in order to capture what the company’s CMO believes to be a gap in the market.

 

 

(press@jd.com)