The Tmall Supermarket Grows %400, Delivers Products & Groceries Same-Day

Online retail has really become a new launching pad for many retailers that are having to make their business go to the next level. It’s a way to get your company from making small amounts of revenue due to low market coverage, to exploding within your industry, all because you have online exposure. It also allows companies to perform a variety of logistical approaches, especially when it’s necessary to work with other retailers and consolidate product orders. This is exactly what is happening for China-based retailer Alibaba, which has created a different approach to generate the kind of sales its’ looking for.

Internet Retailer recently reported how Alibaba is using e-commerce to deliver to shoppers all the goods they need from a number of sellers, all at one time. Alibaba Group Holdings hosts 70,000 online storefronts within their Tmall Supermarket or chaoshi.tmall.com. The online retail site generated $49 billion in sales in 2013. The Tmall has grown exponentially since its’ 2012 rollout. 2013 was a breakout year, growing at 400% and Alibaba expects 2014 to be the same.

The sales have definitely come a long way. A Tmall spokesman stated in the article, “the reason is that consumers like to purchase from different grocery stores. We can’t aggregate the orders at that time so that the shipping costs turn out to be too expensive for consumers who place multiple orders”. This was before 2012, when the company had not tried their new approach. Chinese shoppers have really bought into the Tmall Supermarket and the site retailers have as well.

These storefronts are operated by a variety of retailers, Chinese and foreign. What was discovered was that shoppers would buy their general products from different sellers, however, they did not do the same with their grocery purchases. For example, they would buy their milk from one online storefront, but their rice from another. Alibaba realized that it needed a different online approach to make it work. The retailer decided to create a Tmall Supermarket warehouse, in which all of the storefront sellers would ship their groceries to their location. From there, Alibaba would have the shoppers’ entire order consolidated and delivered to them at one time.

The warehousing is the key ingredient that makes the Tmall successful. Alibaba has outsourced to logistics management company Guangdong ALOG to handle this aspect of chaoshi.tmall.com. ALOG manages warehouses with 200,000 square meters of space across China. From the warehouses, the Tmall sells roughly 20,000 products, including cosmetics, home furnishings, household cleaning goods, food, beverages, and more. This is a great lesson for any company that may just need a shift in their online retail approach.

With every online retail business, whether in the US or elsewhere, has to be an effective delivery system. Tmall performs its’ own same-day delivery, charging around $2 per order and free delivery for orders over $15. A same-day courier like A-1 Express is a viable option for online retailers that can’t perform their own deliveries. The Boston courier can also help with fast returns and correct delivery errors.

Reference: 4.4.14, Fortune Magazine, Dan Mitchell, Next up for disruption: The grocery business

M-Commerce Growth Globally Will Create More Same-Day Delivery

There is no such thing as mobile commerce, or m-commerce, being a distant second to online shopping at home. Tablets, smartphones and other mobile devices, have all contributed to new trend of convenience, seeking to do your daily functions that were once limited to conducting in one location. Now, consumers can do it all, literally in the palm of their hands and from wherever they happen to be. It is no wonder the numbers are showing that m-commerce is increasing, not only in the US, but worldwide.

Internet Retailer has a recent report that discussed the impact m-commerce is having worldwide. 60% of global mobile consumers use their mobile device as the primary or even exclusive means to engaging online. This is accompanied with the fact that 83% of them said that they will purchase a product from their mobile device within the next 12 months. What once was seen insignificant and merely trendy, has emerged as a key factor to business growth. InMobi, a mobile advertiser, performed the survey, which included a broad base of 14,473 mobile device users globally.

InMobi’s 2014 Mobile Media Consumption Report, there were a number of countries surveyed, including China, France, Indonesia, South Korea, Nigeria, Germany, India, Malaysia, New Zealand, South Africa, Kenya, United Kingdom, and the US. The report showed that 48% of the respondents agreed that mobile commerce is the key channel affecting purchasing decisions right now. Whether at home or on-the-go, shoppers are engaging online at any time.

Other findings relative to m-commerce showed what users are doing with their mobile devices. 78% of those surveyed have downloaded mobile apps, 56% have visited an online retail store for more information, 44% have located an advertiser on a map, 43% have called an advertiser via the phone number on the ad, and 68% have visited the web site of an advertiser. In addition, 61% of mobile web users are now as comfortable with mobile advertising as with their TV or online advertising. This opens doors for online retailers seeking to draw shoppers their way. More that 52% of mobile users responded to mobile advertising as well.

M-commerce is not only having an impact on how consumers can shop in regards to accessibility, but also how e-retailers will get the product delivered to them. Companies like Wal-Mart, Amazon, Google, BestBuy, and more are all involved in some form of same-day delivery to meet the mobile commerce demand. Wal-Mart has partnered with top Chinese retailer Yihaodian to perform fast deliveries there as well. Smartphones and other mobile devices, are the top sources for internet access, such as Indonesia and India, which were surveyed.

With m-commerce, the possibilities are endless in regards to the convenience shoppers have at their fingertips. A same-day courier services like A-1 Express is the most quickest and viable option for companies that desire to get into the m-commerce game. The Boston Courier has a national footprint, able to perform same-day delivery anywhere fast. When partnering with A-1 Express, companies will be assured that as m-commerce continues to grow, they will grow with it.

Reference: 2.20.14, Internet Retailer, Bill Briggs, M-commerce is saturating the globe