The might of the Chinese tech empires has been much discussed as they continue to grow and exert influence into the daily lives of Chinese consumers. However, they are now moving beyond the ‘digital realm’ and setting their sights on the world of physical retail, particularly in grocery.
Grocery, in particular fresh foods, is the last bastion for physical grocers – only ~5% of Chinese shoppers only shop online for groceries. Whoever ‘cracks this code’ first stands in position to dominate the future of groceries in China
Many have dubbed this as the age of ‘New Retail’ in China, where the digital and physical blend together to form the omnichannel vision. However, what is less clear, is who is winning in this arena? Is it the traditional brick and mortar retailers who have ramped up digital capabilities over the past few years? Or will it be one of these tech giants?
This report seeks to bring clarity to the Age of Empires happening in the China Grocery sector. We lay out the key battlegrounds these tech giants have selected to play, and early implications on how this could potentially shape out over the next five years.
