Australia’s largest pharmacy retailer, Chemist Warehouse, is extending its partnership with Tmall Global and broadening its presence across Alibaba Group’s ecosystem, including new flagship stores and a possible launch in Southeast Asia, the companies said Tuesday.
The Melbourne-based company signed an updated agreement to sell through Tmall Global, Alibaba’s dedicated cross-border e-commerce platform, for another two years. Chemist Warehouse first launched in Tmall Global in 2015, extending its operations on the site for an additional two years in 2017.
The company’s China CEO, Nancy Jian, said she was excited about the coming two years of partnership with Alibaba.
“The opportunities to grow our business in China and Southeast Asia are second to none and Alibaba is an integral part of our overall growth strategy,” Jian said.
WATCH: Chemist Warehouse Brings Its Low Prices to China
The deal includes three new multi-brand stores – My Chemist, My Beauty Spot and Discount Vitamin Warehouse – which opened last month on Tmall Global, as well as a store on Alibaba’s newly acquired Kaola cross-border e-commerce site. Alibaba bought Kaola from fellow Hangzhou-based internet company NetEase last month.
The companies said that Chemist Warehouse would also open a store on Alibaba-owned Lazada, the leading e-commerce platform in Southeast Asia, to reach consumers in Singapore and Malaysia. There are also plans to focus on a number of smaller and medium-sized brands to provide them easier entry points, market access and marketing support to reach China’s growing consumer market.
Chemist Warehouse is the top-selling company on Tmall Global, offering more than 200 brands and over 3,200 SKUs. The company also has a strong track record at Alibaba’s annual 11.11 Global Shopping Festival. In 2015, they were the first cross-border retailer to achieve RMB 10 million ($1.4 million) in gross merchandise volume during the 24-hour shopping event, in 46 minutes. In 2018, the company reached RMB 100 million in GMV in seven hours.
