Beemers and Big Macs Join Alibaba’s Shopping Extravaganza

What’s new: Chinese consumers now can shop not only for clothes, toys and books on Alibaba Group’s e-commerce platforms, but also Big Macs and luxury cars.

In advance of the Double 11 shopping festival Nov. 11, also known as Singles’ Day, Alibaba signed partnerships with German luxury car maker BMW AG and McDonald’s China.

BMW will become the first automaker to leverage the Alibaba Business Operating System, enabling customers to buy cars directly through BMW’s flagship store on Alibaba’s Tmall platform and make appointments for maintenance.

McDonald’s China also launched a “cross-terminal light store” connected to Alibaba’s commercial operating system. During the Double 11 shopping festival, McDonald’s will introduce a special “Double 11 bucket” meal on its Tmall store.

The background: The Alibaba Business Operating System has been Alibaba Chairman and CEO Daniel Zhang’s main strategy since he took the helm last year from Jack Ma. The system was created to help business partners gain access to all the tools available in Alibaba’s ecosystem.

Zhang said enabling companies to rethink operations for the digital era and embrace the concept of “new organization” has been a core focus for Alibaba as it helps brands accelerate their digital transformation and drive growth.

Quick Takes are condensed versions of China-related stories for fast news you can use. To read the full story in Chinese, click here.

Contact reporter Denise Jia (huijuanjia@caixin.com) and editor Bob Simison (bobsimison@caixin.com).

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