CHINA. A new Alibaba Group online travel platform is launching a service that it said will allow Chinese travellers to make purchases online at duty free and tax free shops, international retailers and speciality stores overseas – before they leave home.
The platform, Fliggy Buy, also gives Chinese consumers product information and reviews in their own language before reaching their destination and allows for the collection of products after arrival.
Alibaba in-house news service Alizila reported today that travellers can choose from a wide range of products, including cosmetics, suitcases, bags and alcohol offered by merchants, and choose a store at which to pick up their items.
So far, said Alibaba, Furla Hong Kong and Laox of Japan (a tax free rather than duty free retailer, despite its ‘duty free’ signage) have begun trading on Fliggy Buy, but Alibaba said it expects more merchants to join the platform soon.
For brands and retailers it could mean a chance to capitalise on a tourism market that saw Chinese travellers take 140 million outbound trips last year. That is up 13.5% compared to 2017, and they spent an average of 9% more on their overseas trips in 2018.
Fliggy Buy Head Roman Zhu said: “The launch of Fliggy Buy represents our latest move to work with merchants targeting the vast numbers of tourists from China to develop innovative solutions, and offer them targeted customer traffic.
“Our aim is also to embrace the potential of digital technology and provide a holistic travel experience encompassing food, accommodation, transportation, sightseeing, shopping and entertainment.”
Fliggy Buy is the latest element of Alibaba’s Global Fun initiative to promote overseas travel for Chinese consumers by working with international merchants. Outbound tourism is a key part of the travel platform’s business, with users visiting 192 countries and regions in 2018.
Zhu said that duty free and tax free stores were the priority during the first phase of Fliggy Buy’s launch as these are the most visited shopping venues among Chinese outbound travellers.
He added: “Our next step is to enrich the product categories on Fliggy Buy and recruit more overseas merchants to include high-end luxury brands, household electronics sellers, as well as pharmacy and cosmetics stores, assisting them to reach more Chinese consumers.”
*At The Trinity Forum in 2017, Guru Gowrappan, Global Managing Director of the Alibaba Group, revealed the approach of the online giant to ‘New Retail’ and discussed the opportunities for convergence between online retail and travel retail. Click here for the dedicated eZine from that event.
