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JD: The Largest Retailer of Moutai Safeguards Its Authenticity

Posted on by Rachel Liu

by Rachel Liu

JD’s annual 618 Grand Promotion started on June 1st. In the first five minutes, sales of Moutai products increased 118 times y-o-y.

Moutai‘s outstanding flavor has made it one of the most popular liquor brands in China. Every year the amount of Moutai that can be sold on market is limited. As such, it is not just a product for consumption, but also for collection. JD’s partnership with Moutai started in 2014, and this March, JD deepened its partnership with Kweichow Moutai to source products directly from the brand. JD got the largest quota of Moutai products among all retailers in China, reinforcing its position as a reliable source for Chinese consumers to buy Moutai.

Now, Moutai’s popular products, such as 43% alcohol Moutai, Chennian Moutai and classic 53% alcohol Feitian Moutai, which is the hardest to get, are all available on JD. Getting a bottle of Moutai to a JD customer is not a simple process, and JD and Moutai have worked closely to ensure that all customers can buy Moutai on JD with peace of mind, and in a fair way. This cannot be achieved without JD’s commitment to authenticity, self-built logistics system and leading retail technology.

Before June 1st, the first day of JD’s June 18 Grand Promotion, every day at 10 a.m., members of JD’s premium membership, JD PLUS were able to buy 53% alcohol. After June 1st, sales of the product open up from time to time. Each customer can only buy two bottles at a time, and no more than five bottles in a single month. Purchase is only open to customers who have had their real names verified, ensuring no customer can register multiple accounts to buy the product. The product will be sold out in a few seconds every time. To prevent scalpers from trying to game the system, in 2017, JD launched an “anti-scalper” system for Moutai products. Leveraging big data to analyze customers’ browsing history, demographic, location, and occupation, the system can automatically distinguish scalpers from real customers. So far, it has intercepted over 100,000 scalpers’ orders.

The entire transportation of Moutai products is done by JD Logistics. JD Logistics will pick up the products from Moutai and store them in JD’s own warehouses, making sure the products are safely stored and ultimately delivered to the consumer. Since June 2018, JD.com has launched a blockchain traceability system for Moutai. All Moutai products have JD’s exclusive traceability codes. After receiving their Moutai products, consumers can scan the code with the JD app or WeChat, and see the complete journey of the product, including when and where the product entered JD’s warehouse and all the steps in the transportation process, re-assuring customers that the product is authentic. JD shares traceability data with Moutai every month to improve the system with Moutai experts. After the beginning the traceability program, customers’ satisfaction on shopping experience has improved significantly to over 99%.

JD has also worked with Moutai’s sub-brand Wangmao, which targets a younger consumer base, and became the exclusive sales channel for Wangmao products. Going forward, JD.com will fully leverage its technology, logistics, big data, and supply chain capabilities to work with Moutai on deeper cooperation in omnichannel projects, finance, and logistics to spur their quality growth.

 

(liucang61@jd.com)

Customers can Collect Parcels at 5000 Convenience Stores in Taiwan

Posted on by Martin Li

by Martin Li

Customers in Taiwan can now collect their parcels for free at almost 5,000 local convenience stores after making purchases on JD’s e-commerce platform https://tw.jd.com/ during the ongoing 618 Grand Promotion.

The free collection applies to any RMB 99-yuan purchase weighing less than five kilograms, and orders made on JD’s direct-to-customer platform.

Customers can choose either free home delivery or collection at stores of FamilyMart and Hi-Life, two popular convenience store brands in Taiwan.

A customer scans JD code at a FamilyMart store.

A customer scans JD code at a FamilyMart store.

Customers can also enjoy free drinks when collecting parcels at convenient stores.

“We really appreciate continued support from our customers in Taiwan and Hong Kong. We will continue improving the customer experience,” said Chris Cui, head of JD Global Sales.

The first day of the Grand Promotion, June 1st, witnessed a growth in sales of 400%, compared with the same period of last year.

Meanwhile, the number of JD users in Taiwan increased by more than 600% on June 1st.

The bestsellers on the first day included office products, smartphones, small home appliances, and car products.

 

(bjlihao3@jd.com)

300+ JD Home’s Offline Stores Launch Livestreaming

Posted on by Martin Li

by Martin Li

More than 300 offline stores of JD Home have launched livestreaming to enable customers to experience smartphones online during the  618 Grand Promotion.

JD Home is the brick-and-mortar smartphone store brand of JD.com, which sells variety of quality computers, telecommunication and consumer electronics.

Instead of inviting celebrities, JD Home stores have their salespeople do livestreaming, shoot live photos, and try different new smartphones while interacting with people online.

Salespersons do livestreaming at JD Home store

Salespersons do livestreaming at JD Home store

Many smartphone brands will join the livestreaming at JD Home stores in cities including Fuzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu and Wuhan.

One of the leading Chinese smartphone makers, Vivo, will have its Brand Day livestreaming on June 10. Honor, a subsidiary smartphone brand of Huawei, will do the same on June 16.

In addition, store staff will make recommendations to walk-in customers based on data analysis of product popularity and customer preference.

Members of JD Home will also have benefits like discounts, extended warranties and limited gifts when they make purchase in store before June 22nd.

Online, many smartphone brands have also joined JD’s Grand Promotion to offer customers various discounts, including Apple, Huawei, OPPO, Vivo, Honor, Nubia, and OnePlus.

 

(bjlihao3@jd.com)

JD Travel: Sales of Leisure and Hotel Package Increased Significantly

Posted on by Vivian Yang

by Vivian Yang

As the weather and the COVID-19 situation get better in China, travel has come back on people’s agendas. Data from JD Travel shows that sales of scenic area tickets on the first two days of 618 increased by 298%.

Sales of admission tickets for amusement parks rose by 437% compared with the same period last year. Sales of suburban amusement tours increased by 153%, in which sales were up 300% in several scenic destinations areas in Beijing, Xinjiang, Yunnan, etc.

Hotel room/night sales went up by 106%, and hotel stay/entertainment package sales were 6 times more than the same period last year. Domestic flight tickets sales were up 172%, while mobile payment services surpassed 427%.

JD Travel is part of JD’s Life & Services business group. Other services include automotive maintenance, online real estate purchase, online auction and fresh flowers booking. With over 100,000 products from 30,000 well-known brands offered online which in turn activate over a million offline business, JD Life & Services is providing a variety of promotions during 618, many of which represent more than 50% discounts.

The growth of consumption of daily life services signifies the beginning of an overall economic recovery. JD Life & Services for consumers is playing an active role in integrating online and offline, and retail and services, to meet customers’ needs and comprehensively improve their shopping experience.

 

(vivian.yang@jd.com)

JD Celebrates Third Anniversary for Its Green Stream Initiative

Posted on by Ling Cao

by Ling Cao

On June 5th, JD provided an update on its sustainable strategy, the Green Stream Initiative, which was launched three years ago.

This month,  the first demonstration park for trash sorting at JD’s Beijing Asia No.1 logistics park will be launched, including labels with trash disposal guidance for packages, and arrange a special area for trash sorting. The project serves as a trial at JD’s own logistics parks, as well as a way to educate customers when they receive orders.

JD's trash disposal guidance for packages

JD’s trash disposal guidance for packages

To date, JD’s Green Stream Initiative has partnered with over 200,000 merchants, and impacted hundreds of millions of customers, helping promote a green living philosophy. The company’s green recycling boxes have been used through supply chain 160 million times in over 30 cities around China, equivalent to every one of Chengdu’s 16 million residents purchasing on JD once and the boxes being used 10 times.

To date, JD’s Green Stream Initiative has partnered with over 200,000 merchants, and impacted hundreds of millions of customers, helping promote a green living philosophy.

JD also operates 5,000 new energy vehicles, which traveled a total of 810 million kilometers, saving enough gas to fill 54 Olympic-sized swimming pools. By using slimmer tape and lighter plastic bags, JD has prevented from generating 50,000 tons of plastic waste. The company has also reduced 1.3 million tons of paper waste by going paperless and using lighter and recycled boxes. JD also implemented a smart packaging recommendation system in its warehouses to provide technology-driven guidance on the best cardboard size for a certain parcel, while the accuracy rate is 96.5%.

JD’s new energy vehicles

JD’s new energy vehicles

Jie Ji, head of JD’s Green Stream Initiative said, “We celebrate three year anniversary of the launch of this project. Going forward, JD will continue to work with industry partners to promote sustainable practices.”

Other highlights of JD’s program include:

  • JD expanded doorstep box recycling program nationwide in 2019. A total of 5.7 million boxes and 3.5 million toys and books have been recycled.
  • In 2019, JD Logistics joined the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), an ambitious global campaign aimed at driving corporate action on climate change.
  • In 2020, the Green Stream Initiative was named one of the Lighthouse Projects by World Economic Forum.
  • In 2020, JD partnered with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) for the third year to support the Earth Hour event and launch another round of its box recycling program.

As the 618 Grand Promotion is ongoing and expect to generate a massive amount of delivery packages, as China’s largest retailer, its JD’s responsibility to leverage its green strategy efforts to reduce waste and make the planet cleaner. This is the long-term strategy JD will continue to aggressively pursue.

 

(ling.cao@jd.com)

Posted in ESG

In the Wake of Shipping 5 Tons of Rice for 4000KM: JD Farm and Xinjiang Agriculture

Posted on by Ling Cao

by Ling Cao

Rukeyamu (Chinese: 如克亚木·麦提赛地), who is the great-granddaughter of Kurban Tulum(1883-1975) who was a legendary uygur,  visited JD headquarters in Beijing early this week.

Rukeyamu highlighted JD’s efforts in helping them transport five tons of rice they donated from Alaer, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, to a hospital in Wuhan in time during the virus two months ago. At that time, Rukeyamu and the Kurban Fund faced many logistics challenges. They tried commissioning a cargo flight or using their own truck, but all attempts failed in the complex situation.

Finally, they noticed a donation project on People’s Daily website and immediately contacted them about transportation. JD Logistics was connected to them and quickly deployed five trucks along the 4,000 km relay across Alaer, Aksu Prefecture and Urumqi in Xinjiang, Xi’an and Zhengzhou, before reaching Wuhan, the final destination.

“JD helped us transport the rice day and night, and it reached the hospital in Wuhan two days earlier than expected. The team’s passion and spirit impressed us.” Rukeyamu showed her appreciation to JD onsite.  “I, on behalf of the Kurban family, want to say thank you to JD,” she added.

While Rukeyamu was visiting JD, both sides discussed further potential cooperation opportunities in retail, logistics, agriculture and technology-driven poverty alleviation. The rice donated is Xinjiang’s local specialty called Suet Rice, which is famous for its rich outside appearance and delicious taste.  Since late last year, JD Farm has started to cooperate with the Kurban team on the special rice they produce with the aim of producing even higher-quality rice for customers, leveraging JD’s expertise in big data, AI and blockchain, as well as e-commerce.

“JD Farm is leveraging its capabilities in technology and e-commerce experience to help the traditional agriculture industry become smarter and more digitalized, and aims to help our partners in Xinjiang produce higher quality products,” said Zhiwei Qiao, head of JD Farm, when talking with Rukeyamu.

“We are hoping to work with JD on a long-term cooperation. JD is well-known for its expertise in e-commerce, logistics and technology, as well as customers’ trust,” said Wei Jiang, Executive Director of Kurban Fund, who expressed willingness to cooperate with JD further.

The popular Uncle Kurban had met Mao Zedong four times. Kurban himself and his great-granddaughter Rukeyamu both elected as deputy to the National People’s Congress.

 

(ling.cao@jd.com)

G-SHOCK and Hamilton Join JD for 618 Countdown

Posted on by Rachel Liu

by Rachel Liu

G-SHOCK and Hamilton have joined hands with JD to set up countdown clocks for JD’s 618 Grand Promotion from June 1st at JD’s Beijing headquarters and Shanghai’s BenQ Commercial Plaza, respectively.

The G-SHOCK countdown clock in Beijing is designed from its 2020 Fluorescent Yellow collection – a new collection that JD wants to introduce to customers during this 618. G-SHOCK has debuted several new products on JD, including a cross-over collection with the Avengers in 2019, and its matte GOLD and BLACK collection in 2018.

Casio opened a flagship store on JD in 2017, bringing six of its sub-brands, including G-SHOCK, BABY-G, EDIFICE and SHEEN to JD customers. JD has large amount of sophisticated customers, and its ability to perform big data analysis on customer profiles have helped Casio gain insights into the Chinese market.

Hamilton’s countdown clock in Shanghai is in the shape of Hamilton’s new PSR watch, which will also be on pre-sale exclusively on JD in Chinese market. Hamilton joined JD’s first-party business in 2018 as the first brand to join JD through the retail giant’s partnership with China’s leading watch retailer Xinyu Group.

Casio opened a flagship store on JD in 2017, bringing six of its sub-brands, including G-SHOCK, BABY-G, EDIFICE and SHEEN to JD customers.

During last year’s 618 Grand Promotion, Hamilton debuted its Ventura “Spiderman” Skeleton Auto Limited Edition watch on JD. The new product was the No. 1 among Swiss watches in terms of sales on the debut day.

 

(liuchang61@jd.com)

Beijing Consumption Vouchers to Be Issued via JD.com App

Posted on by Yuchuan Wang

by Yuchuan Wang and Ella Kidron

On June 3rd, Beijing municipality government announced at a media briefing on the “Beijing Consumption Season” that it will issue electronic consumption vouchers (e-vouchers) starting from June 6th to speed up the restoration of consumer confidence, promote the recovery of the consumer market, and drive high-quality economic development of the nation’s capital.

Starting June 5th, consumers in Beijing can book the e-vouchers on JD.com’s app. From June 6th, consumers who are in Beijing will be able to get the e-vouchers on JD app and use them with participating online and offline merchants. The issuing of the e-vouchers is expected to benefit tens of millions of Beijing inhabitants.

The e-vouchers will be distributed on a first-come-first-served basis. Special consumption subsidies will also be given to personnel on the frontlines of the fight against COVID-19 and low-income groups.

The e-voucher for use at offline catering and shopping establishments will be issued in four batches in June. The first batch of 2 million packages will be issued at 10 a.m. on June 6th, and the other three batches will be issued on June 13th, June 20th and June 27th, respectively. Each package will have a value of RMB 60 yuan and will be valid for 14 days. E-vouchers can only be consumed at participating offline establishments in Beijing.

E-voucher for smart products will be issued in two batches in June. The first batch, which includes one million coupons, will be issued at 10 a.m. on June 6th, while the second will be issued at 10 a.m. on June 18th. The vouchers target consumption in four areas: smart telecommunications, smart home, smart home appliances, and smart home furnishing. Consumers can enjoy a 10% discount on a single order of 2,000 yuan or more on top of existing discounts, up to a maximum discount of 400 yuan. Once claimed, coupons are valid for 14 days. Smart products coupons can be used on online platforms as well as offline brick-and-mortar stores when purchasing specified smart goods.  Additional batches will be distributed in accordance with the “Beijing Consumption Season” activity from July to October.

The announcement of Beijing’s consumption vouchers coincides with JD’s 618 Grand Promotion period, in which the company is providing 10 billion yuan subsidies and hundreds of billions of discounts. E-voucher plus 618 may form a strong stimulus package for the recovery of the normal consumption in Beijing.

 

(yuchuan.wang@jd.com; ella@jd.com)