Bottom line: Alibaba’s new announcement of expansion in France and Germany looks largely incremental rather than a major move, and is aimed at creating positive buzz around its international growth story.
Alibaba names France country head
E-commerce giant Alibaba(NYSE: BABA) is closing out 2015 with a couple of big new hires in Europe, as it tries to give investors new reason to cheer about its future growth prospects. But a closer read of the announcement detailing the hires of country chiefs in France and Germany reveals a distinctly Chinese story, rather than the global expansion tale that many investors are eagerly awaiting.
In this case, Alibaba is choosing to focus on how the new office openings in France and Germany will help merchants in those markets sell into China. That’s part of a broader trend that has seen Alibaba, archrival JD.com (Nasdaq: JD) and global names like Amazon (Nasdaq: AMZN) and Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT) try to offer more global brands to increasingly affluent Chinese consumers who are willing to pay more for these trusted names. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Alibaba’s naming of a westerner and former top Goldman Sachs executive as its new president looks like a smart move to boost its struggling global expansion, and could bring more focus to the division over the next year.
New Alibaba president to lead international efforts
After muddling around on the global stage for a while without much to show for its efforts, I’m happy to see that e-commerce giant Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) has finally taken the step of hiring someone with extensive experience outside China to spearhead its international expansion. The company’s naming of a former Goldman Sachs executive as its new president should help to bring some focus to an international drive that to date has been quite fragmented and hasn’t produced any solid results.
More broadly speaking, the naming of Michael Evans as the new president of Alibaba Group marks the second major appointment for the company in the last 3 months, as founder Jack Ma installs a new executive team to head his $200 billion company. His decision to name foreigners to some of the top spots mirrors a similar strategy by PC giant Lenovo (HKEx: 992) and also Tencent (HKEx: 700), one of Alibaba’s chief rivals. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Alibaba’s boosting of its stake in a leading Indian e-payments firm is part of a broader strategy that aims to replicate its China success in India through a series of acquisitions, and looks relatively well conceived.
Alibaba eyes new India investment
Just a week after abruptly pulling out of a major US investment, e-commerce giant Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) is increasingly focusing on India as the first major stop on its global expansion, with word that it’s in talks for a major new investment in a local e-payments firm. The new investment in Paytm, which would be worth about $600 million, is just the latest in a growing string of similar Indian acquisitions for Alibaba as it tries to replicate its success in China in overseas markets.
From a strategic perspective, India looks like a smart bet for Alibaba. The Indian market shares many characteristics with China, including the lack of a mature western-style retail industry from the pre-Internet era. As a result, a far bigger percentage of people in these markets are more likely to shop online. What’s more, the Indian retail market is relatively less competitive than western markets, and is experiencing rapid growth. Read Full Post…
Bottom line: Alibaba’s decision to sell one of its early US e-commerce sites just a year after the launch looks smart and decisive for new ventures that aren’t performing well, while its new China-based dining services site will face stiff competition.
Alibaba tries dining services with Koubei
Acquisitive e-commerce leader Alibaba (NYSE: BABA) is throwing up a rare white flag of surrender in the US, selling off its 11 Main site just a year after launching the e-commerce platform. That surrender looks relatively minor, as Alibaba never really gave the site much time to develop. But the quick decision to call it quits reflects the challenges Alibaba will face as it tries to show investors that it can be competitive outside its home China market, which will be critical to its future growth.
Meantime, Alibaba was in another separate headline that looks much more typical for the company, announcing a new mega tie-up worth nearly $1 billion that will take it into the dining services category. That initiative looks squarely aimed at Dianping, often called the Yelp (NYSE: YELP) of China, and Dianping’s major backer Tencent (HKEx: 700). Read Full Post…
