Sainsbury’s has announced a partnership with Chinese e-retailer Alibaba to market a few of its products through the online platform, a move that comes after the UK supermarket chain failed to penetrate into Chinese market five years ago.
Only up-market, exclusive items will be put up online for sale. These products would include specialty tea range, coffee, biscuits and So Organic and Little Ones baby products, reported The Grocer.
Last week, test sales began and Sainsbury's is pleased with the response so far.
However, the supermarket chain has clarified that these products would be offered only through the online platform and it does not have plans to open any physical stores in the country.
In 2010, it had planned to enter China; however, the plans could not completely take off.
Sainsbury's will be a late-entrant into the Chinese market as several retailers such as Walmart, Carrefour, Tesco, Auchan, and South Korea's Lotte, have already established their presence in this Asian market.
With a huge population of 1.3 billion, China is a lucrative market for retailers. Further, a series of food scandals has made Chinese consumers wary of domestic brands and are seeking for broader options.
However, expansion into China is not without difficulties - stringent governmental rules on imports and exports have made it difficult to firms; further, the Chinese economy is witnessing a slump, which has curtailed consumer spending.
Alibaba has already indicated that its online shopping business may see a dent in sales volume in the present quarter.
Despite the slump, Sainsbury's has sought to foray into the Chinese online market as almost 50% of the population buy groceries online, as against 25% of global consumers, reported Invezz.
Online grocery sales in China are expected to triple by 2020.
