Taobao Flash Sale โLaunches Group โBuying on Saturday, Challenging Meituan & Dianping
BEIJING โ- Taobao Flash Sale is set โto launch a group buying business this Saturday, aiming toโ compete with โestablished players Meituan and Dianping, โฃparticularly during the upcoming “National โDay Golden Week.” This move comes as alibaba expands its presence in the localโ life servicesโ sector, launching aโ two-pronged approach alongside Gaode (Amap).
According to reportsโ from โmainland media outlet “LatePost,”โ Taobao Flash Sale โwill focus on group buying, partnering withโข Ele.me for fulfillment, while Gaode’s “Gaode Streetโข Sweeping โคList” โคwillโ concentrate onโ local life content. Currently, the two business teams operate independently, with no immediateโข plans for merger announced.
Jiang Fan, CEO of Alibaba E-commerce Businessโ Group, previously notedโข user demand for in-store group โpurchases among Taobao โฃFlash Sale users, indicating aโฃ plannedโฃ expansion into diversified services with potential collaboration with home delivery businesses.
The initialโ rollout will โขfeatureโฃ catering group buying,โ including high-frequency consumer categoriesโ like beverages, Chinese formal meals, breadโ and desserts, chain fast food, and special snacks. The first wave of participating brands includes nationalโค chains such โคas Naixue’s Tea and Taotaoju, alongside local brands like Xunxiangji.
This launch โฃis strategically โฃtimedโ for Saturday, typically the โคpeak order day for Taobao Flash Sale’s โขinstant delivery service, hoping to capitalize on increased customer flow during โthe holiday period.
Alibaba has previously tested in-store business โฃin Shanghai, Shenzhen, and โJiaxing, chosen for their strategic importance โwithin the Ele.me network,โฃ allowing for thorough experimentation.โข The Alibaba โGroup Shopping business teamโฃ currently dedicated to this effort numbers in the hundreds.
Analysts at Morgan Stanley predict Alibaba’s entry into the in-storeโ business will put further โคpressureโค on Meituan’s profitability. Their report estimates Meituan’sโ core local businesses could face operating โlosses of โup to 10 billion yuan, with instant deliveryโ accounting โขfor 15 billion yuan in โขlosses and the โin-store businessโ generating a profit of 5 billion yuan. โฃThe lower โentryโค barrier โขfor in-store business isโข cited as โขa key factor in this projection.