Zespri links up with Chinese online retailer China takes about 15 per cent of Zespri's kiwifruit exports. Picture / NZME
Zespri links up with Chinese online retailer China takes about 15 per cent of Zespri's kiwifruit exports. Picture / NZME
A partnership between Zespri and one of China's biggest online retailers will extend the reach of the New Zealand kiwifruit marketer in the world's second-largest economy.
JD.com, a giant Chinese online shopping service, is launching a "flagship store" for Zespri kiwifruit.
The retailer has more than 225 million customers andrecorded net revenue of 260 billion yuan ($54b) in 2016.
"We can put a lot more of our resources into supporting their efforts in China. We can help to make sure [product] gets out to a lot of customers who might not otherwise be aware of it," said Josh Gartner, JD.com's vice-president of international corporate affairs.
"We have significant logistics infrastructure which provides same and next-day delivery to an area with a population of more than 600m. I think it really changes the reach of what Zespri can do in China," Gartner said.
Kiwifruit is a growing product category on JD.com and made up 15 per cent of the fruit sales on the service last year.
Zespri said it was "delighted" to be working with JD.com and other e-commerce partners to meet the rising demand for kiwifruit in China.
"E-commerce sales will account for around 20 per cent of our volumes and we are excited to have the season underway nearly two weeks ahead of last year, thanks to a slightly earlier harvest."
Zespri exported $400m of kiwifruit to China last season. The country accounts for about 15 per cent of Zespri's sales by volume and has grown by about 30 per cent over the past three seasons.
