Alibaba Aims to Pressure Rivals by Merging Travel, Takeout, E-Commerce Units
Listen to the full version
Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is integrating its food delivery service Ele.me and travel booking platform Fliggy into its e-commerce division, as the Chinese tech giant streamlines its businesses while competition intensifies across China’s consumer services sectors.
Under the new structure, Ele.me and Fliggy will retain independent company operations, but will align their business decisions and execution with the e-commerce division, according to an internal memo sent by Alibaba CEO Eddie Wu on Monday. Ele.me CEO Wu Zeming and Fliggy CEO Zhuang Zhuoran will report directly to e-commerce business group CEO Jiang Fan.
Unlock exclusive discounts with a Caixin group subscription — ideal for teams and organizations.
Subscribe to both Caixin Global and The Wall Street Journal — for the price of one.
- RELATED
- DIGEST HUB
Digest Hub
Back
- Alibaba is integrating Ele.me and Fliggy into its e-commerce division, aligning operations but maintaining independent companies.
- The restructuring aims to strengthen Alibaba’s position amid intensifying competition from JD.com and Meituan in food delivery and travel services.
- During the 618 shopping festival, initiatives like Taobao Flash Sale contributed to a double-digit rise in active buyers and a 10% year-over-year increase in gross merchandise value.
- Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
- Alibaba is integrating its food delivery (Ele.me) and travel booking (Fliggy) platforms into its e-commerce division. This strategic move aims to create a comprehensive consumer platform, optimize business models, and enhance user experience. The restructuring comes amidst intensifying competition from rivals like JD.com and Meituan. Alibaba hopes this integration will boost user activity and spending.
- Ele.me
- Ele.me is Alibaba's food delivery service, now integrated into its e-commerce division. It aims to become a comprehensive consumer platform, offering expanded services beyond just food delivery. Despite rival competition, Ele.me is focused on user needs and improving service quality.
- Fliggy
- Fliggy is Alibaba's travel booking platform. It will retain independent operations but its business decisions and execution will align with Alibaba's e-commerce division. Fliggy's CEO will report directly to the e-commerce business group CEO, aiming to provide a richer and higher-quality consumption experience.
- JD.com Inc.
- JD.com Inc. is a major e-commerce competitor to Alibaba in China. According to the article, JD.com has expanded into food delivery, surpassing 25 million daily orders, and launched a travel services portal offering hotel, flight, and train ticket bookings.
- Meituan
- Meituan is a Chinese food delivery giant that is aggressively promoting its same-day delivery service. They use flash sales and local retail tie-ups to drive growth. Meituan reported over 100% growth in transaction value for some product categories during China's midyear "618" shopping festival.
- Taobao
- The article does not mention Taobao directly, but it does refer to "Taobao Flash Sale" as an upgraded one-hour delivery service from Alibaba. This service is prominently featured on the app's homepage and offers joint promotions with Ele.me, such as discounts and free deliveries. Taobao Flash Sale is credited with driving double-digit growth in active buyers and a 10% year-over-year gain in gross merchandise value during the 618 shopping event.
- PODCAST
- MOST POPULAR
Sign in with Google
Sign in with Facebook
Sign in with 财新