JD com : 5STAR Shows Combined Capability of O2O

by Ling Cao

'On the one hand, as one of JD's businesses, JD 5STAR Group meets the need of penetrating to lower-tier cities. On the other hand, it will improve efficiency as we open home appliance flagship stores across hundreds of cities,' said Yiqing Pan, president of JD 5STAR Group, at the 2020 China National Retail Congress held in Shanghai during November 19 to 21. JD 5STAR Group is a home appliance chain acquired by JD in August.

Yiqing Pan

Pan shared that total sales of the home appliance industry are half online and half offline. In the traditional operation model, many businesses struggle to succeed in a field with fierce competition: The number of offline stores is high, while foot traffic and product selection remain low.

Pan is optimistic. 'Our stores will combine JD's integrated digital retail solutions, with 40% of the products supplied from JD's massive inventory. These stores will focus heavily on experience, which will show high-tech and premium products from brands.'

JD's offline flagship home appliance stores will connect a membership system with JD via mini program of WeChat, providing customers with a superior shopping experience.

'One of the stores which covers an area of less than 20,000 square meters can expect to reach annual sales of RMB 200 million yuan, which proves that offline stores are not as hard to operate as many people thought; it's all about the know-how of efficiency.' Pan said.

Leveraging JD's online resources, technology, marketing and traffic flow capabilities, Pan believes that JD's growth will continue in the home appliance industry.

Pan concluded that JD's business model in this area will go in several directions: More cost-effective products, better experience and services.

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