Kroger Partners with Alibaba, Dives into Chinese Market
CINCINNATI, OH - While it has been relatively quiet on the Amazon front lately, the e-tailer remains at large at the top of the grocery retail food chain. In response, major competitors Walmart and Kroger have been circling new, overseas markets in an effort to knock Amazon out of the top spot. This week, Kroger announced it is diving into the Chinese market and is teaming up with Alibaba, one of Walmart’s biggest rivals, to launch an online storefront on Alibaba’s Tmall Global platform.
“E-commerce enables Kroger to quickly scale to reach new customers and markets where we don’t operate physical stores, starting with China,” said Yael Cosset, Kroger’s Chief Digital Officer. “We anticipate Chinese consumers will love Our Brands—starting with Simple Truth® products—just like our American customers do. Kroger is proud to continue to lead the way in making natural, organic, and free-from products more mainstream and accessible. Sharing Kroger’s exclusive brands and status as a food authority the world over is exciting.”
Kroger’s new online store introduces Our Brands and Simple Truth products to international customers for the first time. According to a press release, Simple Truth has grown to be the second-largest brand sold in Kroger stores since its launch five years ago, while Alibaba’s Tmall Global platform is one of China’s largest business-to-consumer marketplaces that provides international brands and retailers a place to build virtual storefronts and ship products into China. By combining the two in a strategic move, Kroger hopes to continue its brands' success with Alibaba’s half a billion consumers.
"Kroger is the world's third largest retailer by revenue—$122.7 billion in sales in 2017. We are creating the grocery retail model of the future by focusing on digital and technology," added Cosset.
This week, Kroger’s stock shot up, presumably in response to its new partnership that will significantly expand its international footprint.
How will Amazon, Walmart, and more major grocery players respond to Kroger’s new international strategy? AndNowUKnow will continue to keep report.
