Amazon sets up shop on rival Alibaba’s Tmall
Amazon has ramped up its drive to tap into the Chinese market by opening its second shop on Alibaba’s Tmall.
The US giant has had an online presence in China since 2011 after acquiring Joyo.com – a Chinese books, music and video retailer – in 2004 and rebranding it to Amazon.cn seven years later.
It leant on Alibaba’s Tmall – a B2C marketplace for Western brands to sell in China - for the first time last year, launching a shop for its Kindle e-book reader.
The retailer is now further expanding with a second shop which will offer food, women's footwear, toys and kitchenware.
A statement from Alibaba welcomed its rival onto the platform.
"Their presence will further broaden the selection of products and elevate the shopping experience for Chinese consumers on Tmall," a spokeswoman said.
It comes as Alibaba continues its charm offensive on Western brands to Tmall. The latest move saw it forge a partnership with trading platform Neteven, which counts Amazon among its customers.
Ken Ardali, director of international e-commerce at Alibaba, told The Drum at the time that the opportunities of Tmall are still overlooked by many retailers.