20-Jul-18, TechCrunch
Starbucks is palling up with Alibaba as it seeks to rediscover growth for its business in China.
China has been a bright spot for some time for the US coffee giant, but lately it has struggled to maintain growth and it is up against some ambitious new rivals, including billion-dollar startup Luckin Coffee.
%20TechCrunch.jpg "Starbucks partners with Alibaba on coffee delivery to boost China business (c) TechCrunch")
Image: TechCrunch
One-year-old Luckin recently raised USD200 mn from investors and it has already built quite a presence. It claims over 500 outlets across China and taps into the country's mobile trends, with mobile payments and orders, and delivery. Then there are some deep discounts aimed at getting new users.
In response, Starbucks is injecting some of that 'New Retail' strategy into its own China presence, which signifies a marriage between online and offline commerce - and it is doing so with none other than Alibaba.