Retailers targeting the Chinese market can now leverage Alibaba’s ‘operating system’ of sales, technology and logistics services under a newly-launched strategic partnership scheme that appears to go deeper than Fulfilment by Amazon.
The new ‘A100’ strategic partnership programme, announced at the inaugural “Alibaba ONE Business Conference” in Hangzhou last Friday, offers companies ‘a holistic one-stop solution to accelerate their digital transformation’ through ‘a deep and longstanding working relationship’ with Alibaba businesses across 11 different areas of business, according to the Chinese e-commerce giant.
In comparison, Fulfilment by Amazon mostly focuses on logistics services for third-party retailers on the Amazon Marketplace but is not integrated with the US firm’s cloud technology or other services. In China, JD.com last year opened up its in-house logistics operation to external clients.
The A100 programme is built on the “Alibaba Operating System,” which has been created as Alibaba has developed from an e-commerce provider to an integrated global technology company, with products and services ranging from digital content, payments and cloud-based technology to ‘New Retail’ (a combination of online and offline sales channels) and extensive logistics through its subsidiary Cainiao Network.
The Chinese group said it is now offering this Alibaba Operating System to companies of all sizes through the A100 programme, which lets them choose from an exhaustive menu of services to enhance their business operations. The operating system can serve brands and companies in 11 different areas: branding, product development, sales, marketing, channel management, customer services, finance, logistics and supply chain, organizational structure and information communication management.
Alibaba will establish a cross-platform integrated account-serving team to supervise the implementation of A100 and will start with partners already in the company’s ecosystem. The program will gradually expand to other brands looking to optimize their digital operations.
“With over 600 million monthly active users and nearly 30 business units specializing in enterprise services from digital retail, mobile payments and digital marketing to IT infrastructure and more, Alibaba is the leading partner for businesses within China and around the world. Collaboration with Alibaba helps companies and brands capitalize on growing consumption by China’s middle class. The A100 initiative, powered by the Alibaba Operating System, will be a one-stop shop for businesses to access a comprehensive range of enterprise services in the digital era,” said CEO Daniel Zhang.
“Many partners have gained enhanced operational efficiency and business growth through a deep partnership with Alibaba. Synergies generated by our ecosystem are creating new avenues for sales and distribution, and catalysing product innovation to capture opportunities in lifestyle upgrades across China. We look forward to adding many more global and Chinese domestic companies to the A100 strategic partnership program in the near future,” he added.
One strategic partner is Nestlé, which has expanded from online B2C sales through Tmall and Taobao into new Alibaba channels, such as Lingshoutong, FRESHIPPO (formerly known as Hema) supermarket and RT-Mart, as well as collaborating on digitalisation projects.
In terms of logistics, Nestlé last year signed a strategic partnership with Cainiao, enabling it to consolidate four distributors serving the Alibaba-related business into one and introducing the “One Set” inventory system to fulfill online orders. “As a result, Nestlé can fully leverage Cainiao’s intelligence to sort products and manage inventories according to consumers’ preferences in different regions, reducing the proportion of cross-region parcels and speeding up deliveries”, Alibaba pointed out.
Another strategic partner is fast-moving consumer goods giant Unilever which works with different platforms in the Alibaba ecosystem, from Tmall and Taobao to Alipay and Cainiao, as well as digital media and entertainment division Youku and Alibaba Cloud to Lingshoutong.
“Becoming an A100 Strategic Partner does not only show our ambition to win with Alibaba, but also shows Unilever globally sees Alibaba as one of the most-important platforms to drive brands and engage with consumers,” said Wu Yating, vice president of digital marketing and e-commerce. “China, as our biggest market in e-commerce, will definitely play a key role in driving the changes.”
One other big-name strategic partner is Starbucks, which now collaborates with diverse Alibaba businesses, including on-demand food delivery platform Ele.me for deliveries in 30 cities, FRESHIPPO supermarket, Tmall, Taobao and Alipay.
