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Richemont and Alibaba Group announced a global strategic partnership

29 october 2018
news_29102018_alibaba_richemont.pngRichemont, the Swiss luxury goods group, and Alibaba Group  announced a global strategic partnership to bring the retail offerings of YOOX NET-A-PORTER GROUP S.p.A. (YNAP), the world’s leading online luxury retailer, to Chinese consumers.
Under the partnership, YNAP and Alibaba will establish a joint venture (JV) to launch two mobile apps for YNAP’s NET-A-PORTER and MR PORTER multi-brand, in-season online stores for consumers in China. In addition, the JV will launch NET-A-PORTER and MR PORTER online stores on Alibaba’s Tmall Luxury Pavilion, an exclusive platform dedicated to the world’s leading luxury brands.
Alibaba will provide technology infrastructure, marketing, payments, logistics and other technology support to the JV. The partnership will also leverage YNAP’s strong relationship with leading luxury brands, some 950 of them being currently distributed through YNAP in China.
Johann Rupert, Chairman of Richemont, said: “Chinese customers at home and abroad are an increasingly important customer base for Richemont and for the broader luxury industry. Our digital offering in China is in its infancy and we believe that partnering with Alibaba will enable us to become a significant and sustainable online player in this market.”
Daniel Zhang, CEO of Alibaba Group, said: “Chinese consumers are expected to account for nearly half of the global luxury market by 2025, and through this partnership, Alibaba and YNAP will be even better positioned to capture this compelling market opportunity. As Chinese consumers continue to upgrade their lifestyles, we want to meet the desires of Alibaba’s more than 600 million users.”

Alex Shishlo, Editor of the Rough&Polished European Bureau in Brussels