About the Company

Alibaba Group Holding Limited, usually known as Alibaba Group or Alibaba.com, is a

Chinese multinational technology corporation that specialises in e-commerce, retail, the
Internet, and technology. Alibaba is not a traditional retailer in the sense of the word. It does
not source or maintain inventory, and third-party logistics partners handle the logistics.
Instead, Alibaba is the result of coordinating all of the processes connected with retail online
into a huge, data-driven network of sellers, marketers, service providers, logistics businesses,
and manufacturers.
History. In his Hangzhou residence on June 28, 1999, Jack Ma launched Alibaba.com, a
China-based B2B marketplace site, with 17 friends and students. Alibaba received a US$25
million investment from Goldman Sachs and SoftBank in October 1999.
Alibaba.com has three main services: Alibaba.com, an English-language portal that handles
sales between importers and exporters from over 240 countries and regions, 1688.com, a
Chinese portal that manages domestic B2B trade in China, and AliExpress.com, a
transaction-based retail website that allows smaller buyers to buy small quantities of goods at
wholesale prices. Alibaba.com delisted from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2012 after
going public in 2007. 1688.com developed a direct channel in 2013 that had a daily
transaction value of $30 million. And alos, Taobao Focuses on Consumer-to-Consumer
Tmall Focuses on Business-to-Consumer
During the fiscal year that ended March 31, 2021, the firm earned $21.9 billion in net income
on $109.5 billion in revenue. As of July 7, 2021, Alibaba had a market capitalization of
$584.4 billion. In the fiscal year ending March 31, 2020, Chinese e-commerce corporation
Alibaba invested approximately 31 billion yuan in advertising and promotional activities.
Mergers and acquisitions:
Alibaba has always followed the path of Amazon. By following Amazon they have
understood the art of Supply chain expansion. But, they have also implemented one of their
own strategies, that is to, branch out in to many services. Few of the companies that the
company has bought are,

 Youku Tudou Inc.

o Type of Business: Multi-Screen Entertainment and Media Company
o Acquisition Price: $1.1 billion for a 16.5% stake; $4.4 billion for the
remaining stake.
o Acquisition Date: May 2014 (16.5% stake); April 2016 (remaining stake)
 Alibaba Pictures Group (formerly ChinaVision Media)
o Type of Business: Film Company
o Acquisition Price: $804 million (controlling stake)
 South China Morning Post (SCMP)
o Type of Business: English-Language Newspaper
o Acquisition Price: $266 million
o Acquisition Date: April 2016
Alibaba’s “New Strategy”: Revolutionise shopping
Alibaba's 'New Retail' concept intends to blur the barriers between online and offline
commerce by converting actual stores into pickup hubs for online orders, integrating supply
chains, and allowing customers to use the same digital payment methods on its e-commerce
platforms and in physical stores.
Taking ownership of Sun Art would boost Alibaba's omnichannel capabilities, bolstering its
e-commerce operations as well as its brick-and-mortar position, as e-commerce is likely to
account for only a small portion of Alibaba's revenue. Alibaba has announced that it will buy
a controlling position in Sun Art Retail Group for over US$3.6 billion, following a US$2.88
billion investment in the store operator in 2017. Sun Art will be owned by Alibaba to the tune
of 72 percent.
The main aim of this strategy is to digitalise the value chain. New retail is based on the
simple premise that the future will not involve total domination of e-commerce. Instead, it’ll
involve digitization of all commerce. Not only will new retail impact customer interaction,
but the entire value chain as well. It's a full-stack digitalization project. Retailers will be able
to create better, more flexible supply chains capable of managing inventories across both
physical and virtual channels. Simultaneously, data will play a larger role in product
development than ever before. Everything will be viewed through the perspective of
technological enablement, business impact, and customer experience by brands and retailers.
Alibaba's long-term strategic goals include preserving the Chinese domestic market. Alibaba
must first retain its native market in order to achieve global success. Alibaba would not be
able to survive without the Chinese market due to its economies of scale. Alibaba is aiming to
expand its business in developing countries like India, which is the world's second fastest
growing economy after China.

Logistics strategy:
Alibaba is known for its great logistics. It has made its agenda to have the best logistics
department. This could give the end consumers a better price for their products. The company
has two new strategies for their logistics department. The company's cross-board e-commerce
platform, announced a cross-border supply chain solution for large commodities after signing
a cooperation deal with Israeli shipping carrier Zim. The other strategy is, Cainiao Smart
Logistics Network, AliExpress has been collaborating with Alibaba's logistics arm, Cainiao
Smart Logistics Network, and last-mile logistics providers to "substantially reduce cross-
border delivery time," particularly in Europe. Cainiao will significantly increase its chartered
flights, expand the number, size, and coverage of its warehouse facilities, and develop its
partnerships with customs officials across the world to assist both consumers and merchants
running 100,000 online stores by speeding up delivery.
Expansion strategy:
Ascential forecasts Alibaba's U.S. business to grow at a CAGR of 8.5% between this year
and 2025, adding $2.2 billion in sales. Alibaba as a whole, taking into account all its global
operations, is set to grow at a CAGR of 12.9% between 2020 and 2025, adding $556.4 billion
in sales. Alibaba’s international commerce retail revenue also grew by 26% year-over-year to
$992 million, according to its latest earnings report.
This shows that the company has constant expansions. Their current ‘New Retail’ strategy is
their biggest step towards expansion as it aims to digitise the retail market.

Omni-channel marketing
According to Alibaba ‘omnichannel retailing is now the gold standard for success.’ The goal
of omnichannel marketing is to provide shoppers with a consistent, tailored experience across
all channels and devices. Customer contact in retail has evolved significantly over the years,
from traditional store visits to purchasing from the comfort of our own homes via e-
commerce, and now to New Retail. Although the merging of online and offline (O2O)
commerce is not a novel concept, “New Retail” expects a higher level of customer-centric
involvement through the use of data technology. The “New Retail” strategy is very clever and
is beyond omni channel. One of their major strategies is done by acquiring HEMA, HEMA
offered customers to choose order online via HEMA mobile app and receive free delivery
within half an hour in a 3km radius, or scan barcodes at the store, pay via HEMA app and set
up delivery, blending the online and offline shopping experience. HEMA is currently only
based on food products. HEMA is not only a one-stop store, but its exciting structure and
display, particularly in the fresh seafood department, is a game-changer.
Amazon Vs Alibaba
Different approaches to omni-channel logistics are taken by the two companies. For years,
Amazon has been gaining market share from traditional retailers; as a result, established
retailers are investing billions of dollars to improve their omni-channel capabilities in order to
compete more effectively with Amazon. Amazon competes with retailers' omni-channel
strategies.
Alibaba is a retailer's competitor in China, particularly in Tier 1 cities. However, China's
retail sector, particularly in small and medium-sized cities, is underserved. As a result, there
is more room for merchants and China's e-commerce giant to collaborate.

Collaboration strategies:
Alibaba and Tencent, two Chinese digital titans, are discussing collaborating to share each
other's offerings as Beijing tightens its grip over the industry. Alibaba's first moves could
involve integrating Tencent's WeChat Pay into Alibaba's eCommerce marketplaces, Taobao
and Tmall, according to WSJ sources. According to reports, Tencent may make it easier to
post Alibaba eCommerce listings on its WeChat messaging app, or it may allow some
Alibaba services to access WeChat users via WeChat mini-programs.
Office Depot and Alibaba stated the partnership will allow them to benefit from each other's
capabilities through a co-branded online business-to-business wholesale platform. For Office
Depot, this includes its 10 million-plus U.S. corporate clients, 1,800 salespeople, a logistics
network that can cover approximately 99 percent of U.S. businesses with next-day delivery,
and 1,350 combined Office Depot and OfficeMax retail stores.
These two projects show they have collaborated and this is a huge benefit for both the
companies.

Lowering prices:
Alibaba's reputation for offering low-cost goods is one of the main reasons for its enormous
popularity. Because customers may deal directly with suppliers via the Alibaba online
marketplace, Alibaba items, which are often sold in large numbers, can be significantly less
expensive for buyers.
Alibaba essentially serves as a go-between for manufacturers and purchasers all around the
world. Sellers can put their Alibaba items on the Alibaba marketplace for free, with the
option to upgrade for additional benefits such as increased exposure and the ability to list
more products.
The main reasons for Alibaba to have lower prices are

 Bulk purchasing
 Lower Manufacturing costs
 Price negotiation
 Purchase directly from manufacturers

Strong Supply chain:

The main reason for strong supply chain of Alibaba is,
1. They understand their customers,
2. They deliver outstanding service,
3. They have an established logistics department,
4. They keep finance flowing,
5. They set their goal ahead of time,
6. They always put employees on rotation,
7. They create a vison that inspires.
Jack Ma creates his own version of vision the way Jack Welch does and call it "Spirit
Sword." It's basically the Mission, Vision, and Values that every Alibaba's employees should
follow.

Hyper-personalisation
Alibaba is highly personalized app seems to know you better than you know yourself. the
advanced personalization dramatically improves user experience, at least initially. To be
clear, this is not your everyday app personalization.
Changing the Perception
To change the perception, we need to communicate with the people and taking a survey. All
the charges in a company happiness either the company is in tremendous growth and wants to
attract the customer or to close the current brand. Alibaba is currently in a constant state of
growing up so the company has started to implement more and more strategies like the New
retail strategy. All these new strategies come under Changing perception.
Joint venture:
Alibaba Group (NYSE: BABA), MegaFon, a pan-Russian digital services operator, Mail.ru
Group (MAIL), Russia's leading internet and IT company, and Russia's sovereign wealth
fund, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF), have announced the completion of a joint
venture transaction to integrate Russia's key consumer internet and e-commerce platforms
and the launch of a leading social commerce platform.
Cash on delivery:
This has been there in the company since the beginning but now currently everyone is going
to digital payment methods and Alibaba has adapted to that also. In their website they clearly
state that there is an option for COD.
Conclusion
Alibaba is a very successful e-retail business. His could be because of their unconventional
profit model: Instead of charging for entrance, Alibaba charges for marketing and technical
support services. As a result, the company has a substantial and stable market share made up
of loyal clients. Alibaba's profits are mostly derived from advertisements and keyword
bidding, which account for 57% of total earnings. Some say that, Alibaba's initiatives
contributed to its success: a great brand, exceptional value and a superior shopping
experience for customers, tremendous sales volume, and achieving economies of scale. e-
Marketplace, e-Commerce, and Strategies. According to me the best strategy of Alibaba is
An Online-to-Offline Strategy: Also known as an O2O service, Alibaba enables customers to
buy a product, or receive targeted advertisements, by scanning a two-dimensional code. This
is a state-of-the-art strategy that even many US companies have failed to adopt. Also,
Alibaba provides services mainly to small enterprises and individuals. This defines a unique
business opportunity which emancipates the productive forces of small enterprises and offers
more diversified consumption choices for consumers. By this we can understand that Alibaba
is a very unique company with few great strategies.