Two of China’s biggest retailers, GOME Electrical Appliances Holdings Ltd and Suning Appliance Co Ltd are battling to make the biggest penetration of the country’s booming e-commerce market. Author: Deborah Bates
Two of China’s biggest retailers, GOME Electrical Appliances Holdings Ltd and Suning Appliance Co Ltd are battling to make the biggest penetration of the country’s booming e-commerce market.
According to Reuters.com, the retailers are “racing” against each other in order to take full advantage of online shoppers; using the lower distribution costs and global reach of the internet to boost their profits.
Dale Preston, an expert in Chinese retail, said the move had come at exactly the right moment. He explained: “The time is definitely right and arguably it is late for the retailers to get into e-commerce, given that many consumers have established online shopping habits.”
It is definitely an intelligent step forward for the retails, as recent reports have confirmed that business-to-consumer (B2C) sales in China will triple to $159 billion in 2015 – equivalent to £101 billion. Of this, around five per cent will be directly attributable to e-commerce, Yahoo.com revealed.
However in order for the venture to be a success, both GOME and Suning will have to ensure their respective online payment services are working well. If they aren’t, consumers may get fed up and resort to shopping elsewhere for their goods.
Preston wasn’t the only person to air his opinion on the news, as Wu Da, a Beijing-based fund manager revealed that this is the perfect next step for the companies.
“GOME and Suning have passed their golden growth period. The next stage of development is to focus on improving efficiency and cutting costs,” he revealed. “E-commerce is a way to achieve that.”
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