Alibaba says New Retail strategy is paying off as Hema shopper data shows bigger average spending

Alibaba chief executive Daniel Zhang has reiterated Alibaba's New Retail and globalisation strategy in his first major presentation since being named the company's chairman-designate last week.

As part of Alibaba's annual investor day event, Zhang gave an hour-long presentation on Tuesday emphasising the company's strategy of integrating online and offline retail, expansion into digital content and its globalisation push, as it seeks to expand its e-commerce empire both within and outside China.

“[Alibaba] has evolved its mission in a new environment, a new era,” Zhang said, adding that it has changed from just allowing users to meet and trade on its platform, to now letting users even live and work using the company’s services. “Alibaba uses big data, analytics, machine learning and artificial intelligence to create value from data, to help businesses and partners improve operations.”

Alibaba is banking on its New Retail model, where online and offline retail are integrated, and the Hangzhou-based company’s chain of Hema Supermarkets is something of a test bed for this. In recent years, the company has poured billions into acquiring stakes in offline retailers, a point of concern for some investors as margins have been squeezed. Separately, the company is also hoping to help bricks-and-mortar shops digitise their operations to offer online services, and use data generated from such businesses to further improve and tailor operations.

Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma, known as Ma Yun on the mainland, earlier this month announced that he would be stepping down as executive chairman in a year, handing over the reins to current chief executive Daniel Zhang Yong. Zhang has been the driving force behind Alibaba's Hema Supermarkets and is spearheading Alibaba’s New Retail strategy as the company gears up for competitive battles with the likes of Tencent-backed Meituan-Dianping.