German discounter Aldi Süd has announced that Chinese customers will soon be able to buy its products on the Tmall Global digital platform, operated by China's Alibaba Group.
The 'soft launch' of the initiative will be on 20 March, and the grand opening will be accompanied by a launch event in Shanghai on 25 April.
Initially, products expected to have a good uptake in the Chinese market, such as wines, breakfast foods, and snacks, will be offered.
Purchases in the Chinese market will be supplied by established Australian providers.
"For decades ALDI's own brands have enjoyed the reputation of providing excellent value for money," says Christoph Schwaiger, CEO of the retailer's arm in China. "We are convinced that Chinese customers are also very interested in the quality and the reasonable prices we can offer them."
Terry von Bibra, general manager of Alibaba Group's European division, commented on the new alliance, "We are very pleased to support Aldi Süd in the Chinese market with Tmall Global, one of the largest e-commerce platforms for consumers in China, and to work as a strategic partner with Aldi Süd in other areas such as B2C, B2B and marketing".
"Alibaba's e-commerce platforms reach not only approximately 443 million active users, but also serve the strongly growing interest of the Chinese middle class in products made in Germany".
Irish retailer Musgrave Group started selling SuperValu private label products on the Tmall Global site in 2016.
With the entry into China, Aldi Süd will be present (physically or online) in ten countries.
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Karen Henderson. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
