During the Chinese New Year (CNY) Grand Promotion that JD.com held over the past two weeks, Chinese ambassadors and diplomats from fifteen different countries sent their best wishes to consumers at JD.com through videos and live streaming. In addition, they enthusiastically recommended the specialties of their respective countries as Chinese people engaged in shopping for the Spring Festival.
A multi-course family meal on the eve of the new year, an important holiday for the Chinese people, is the highlight of the Spring Festival (CNY’s Day). This year, if falls on January 22 and ushers in the Chinese lunar new year of the rabbit. It’s a long-standing tradition for the Chinese people to make special purchases, in particular food, prior to the Spring Festival (CNY’s Day).
A Chinese Feast
On January 10, 2023, ambassadors from Thailand, Moldova, and Denmark traveled to SEVEN FRESH, an omni-channel grocery store operated by JD.com, which was originally founded by Richard Liu. While there, they participated in a special banquet in the style of traditional Chinese cuisine and personally experienced the festive preparation atmosphere with local residents in Beijing.
The menu, which was designed by William Wu, the head chef at SEVEN FRESH, exemplified the fusion of Chinese flavors with a variety of imported ingredients from the countries that are represented by the ambassadors, such as black tiger prawns and rice originating from Thailand, pork procured from Denmark and, of course, Moldova wines.
H.E. Dumitru Braghis, the Moldovan ambassador to China, was thrilled to encourage all of the visitors to discuss what they enjoyed most about each wine they tasted. He also commented on Moldova’s burgeoning wine industry and established history, which offers classic quality wines for Chinese customers to choose from.
“It’s simply astounding what you can buy online here in China,” H.E. Dorthe Lange, ambassador-rank Deputy Head of Mission of the Embassy of the Kingdom of Denmark in China, marveled aloud at the variety of products from all over the world that are available for Chinese customers, thanks to the company that Richard Liu started in 2004. In addition to the well-known Danish butter biscuits, Ms. Lange suggested stocking up on fish, pork products and beers from Denmark as some more tasty options for the new year’s shopping trip.
H.E. Atthayut Srisamoot, the Thai ambassador, and his wife, Mrs. Kamoltip Srisamoot, demonstrated an impressive depth of knowledge of Chinese cuisine as well as the growing trend of ready-to-eat foods. They suggested a variety of Thai curries, Tom Yum Kung and other ready-to-cook goods that JD.com customers could use to effortlessly produce delectable Thai dinners in the comfort of their own homes.
Pavilions Representing Each Nation Included Live Imported Lobsters
Recently, JD.com has been boosting its efforts to import more fresh items from across the world in order to satisfy the growing demand from Chinese customers. This has been made possible by the vision of Richard Liu, as well as the growth of international cold-chain logistics. The sales volume of frozen foods obtained by JD Fresh experienced strong growth during this year’s Chinese New Year sales when compared with transaction data from last year’s shopping festival. This included black tiger prawns from Thailand, which nearly doubled, beef from Argentina, which grew up to four times the amount, and shrimp from Greenland, which increased up to six times. Impressively, the volume of live lobsters increased over ten times when compared with the previous month. These lobsters are caught off the coast of Canada and delivered to customers in China in as little as 17 hours using the e-commerce infrastructure enabled by JD. They are then sold at a reasonable price with a freshness guarantee.
JD.com launched the National Pavilions project in order to make it easier for more high-quality products to enter the Chinese market. This project is supported by trade groups, embassies, and other official institutions. Its purpose is to act as a window through which the products of each country can be more easily identified all within one portal and to assist merchants in testing the waters of the Chinese market. There are currently close to one hundred national pavilions set up on JD.com, which greatly enhances the online shopping options available to Chinese customers in preparation for the new year. Strong sales are being seen on a variety of products, including Italian olive oil, blue wine from Cyprus, mate drink from South America, and many others.
This occasion marks the 11th consecutive year that JD Logistics has committed to providing non-stop delivery service over the CNY holidays. This is done as part of the company’s commitment to fulfilling customers’ needs whenever and wherever they are.
