Alibaba Group’s Taobao Marketplace has opened a brick-and-mortar retail store in Malaysia.
The 5,000-square-foot store, located in the Kuala Lumpur shopping mall MyTOWN, is the e-commerce site’s newest physical store in Southeast Asia. A home furnishing-focused Taobao store opened in Singapore in September.
“The Taobao store will serve as a platform for us to showcase popular products and introduce new ones that appeal to local consumers,” said Jess Lew, marketing manager of Tmall World Malaysia. “We hope to employ our consumer insights and technology to create new opportunities for our local partners to deliver even better services.”
Lew said the store marks the closest expression of Alibaba’s New Retail concept in the country – the company’s strategy to transform retail through the convergence of digital and physical retail, with the consumer experience at the center.
Taobao said the store, launched in collaboration with Malaysian retailer Lumahgo, looks to create a seamless experience that blends online with offline shopping: Consumers have the option of purchasing items in the store or scanning the QR codes on electronic price tags via their phones, to have the products delivered directly to their homes. They can see, touch and feel the products in person, as well as access product descriptions online, before making a purchase.
WATCH: Taobao Opens Comprehensive Retail Store in Malaysia
To enhance the shopping experience, the store installed Alibaba’s technologies like the “Magic Mirror,” an augmented reality-powered mirror for consumers to virtually try on makeup and assess skin conditions.
Over 1,000 popular products are now available for purchase in the store, including mom and baby products, beauty products, home accessories, snacks, books, gadgets and smart home appliances. The product selection is based on the purchasing preferences of local users of the Taobao app, for example, populating the store with more gadgets and smart home appliances, top-selling categories on the app. The selection features a mix of international and homegrown brands such as Lorenzo, Khind, KitchenAid and Deep Furniture, the platform said.
Fabian Kong, CEO of Lumahgo New Retail, said the goal is to not only bring brands’ latest products closer to consumers, but also provide localized, upgraded services that exceed their expectations.
“Shoppers can enjoy a full package of pre- and after-sales services, design consultations and installations and many such offerings that elevates their shopping experience,” Kong said.
More than 30,000 consumers visited the store during the first three days, with some of the best-selling products include Unifon’s facial masks, Xiaomi’s 4K television sets, snacks from Chinese brand Bestore and Tmall Genie smart speakers, said Taobao.
