HONG KONG -- They are not your typical deliverymen: Clad in black suits with ties and white gloves, they collect products from special warehouses controlled for temperature and humidity, then fan out across Beijing to deliver them by hand. They are taking the experience of shopping at a luxury boutique to consumers' front doors -- part of a strategy by big Chinese e-commerce companies to cater to the increasingly affluent Chinese.
JD.com and Alibaba Group Holding have widened their high-end offerings and paired them with premium service, in a sign of how competitive the business has become. JD.com together with Internet conglomerate Tencent Holdings said Dec. 18 it would invest $863 million in cash in China's apparel e-tailer Vipshop. The company hoped the move would "further extend the strong inroads that we have made with female shoppers, and will expand the breadth and reach of our fashion business," said JD.com Chief Executive Richard Liu Qiangdong.
