How Alibaba is leading the evolution of online luxury shopping
- Alibaba’s Tmall Luxury Pavilion is the first e-commerce platform to collaborate with the world’s largest luxury groups, including LVMH, Richemont and Kering
- Thanks to the implementation of new digital strategies, the platform attracts and retains high-spending consumers who have dramatically uplifted sales for brands
Each spring, luxury watch collectors flock to Geneva for the Watches and Wonders fair, where they can glimpse the newest releases from venerated watchmakers such as Van Cleef & Arpels, Cartier, IWC, Zenith and Chopard. But this year, Chinese consumers did not have to fly anywhere to see the newest releases – they simply scrolled through the Taobao app.
This is the result of an ongoing partnership between the Chinese e-commerce platform Tmall Luxury Pavilion and prestigious luxury watch brands participating in Watches and Wonders.
It allowed users to view and compare the latest watch creations, and shop directly from the offerings in Geneva, with 50 releases available for immediate purchase or pre-order during the fair from April 9 to 15.
They could also watch celebrity live streams, win limited-edition gifts and participate in other VIP experiences that had previously been offline only – all through their phones.
Digitised experiences such as this are not limited to special events – they are the bread and butter of Tmall Luxury Pavilion. With European watch and jewellery houses looking to the Chinese luxury market to gain revenue and long-term opportunities, Tmall’s sophisticated digital technologies are set to help them stay ahead.
The Post spoke to Janet Wang, general manager of Tmall Luxury Pavilion under Alibaba’s Taobao and Tmall Group, to learn the ways in which the platform is setting the trends for capturing and retaining digital-savvy consumers.
