Delivery man from Freshippo dealing with surging grocery orders in Beijing. Photo credit: Alibaba Group

This week, Alibaba Group’s online and offline grocery store platform Freshippo launched an employment scheme for Beijing hospitality staff who find themselves without work due to the pandemic.

In other news, community marketplace app Taocaicai cut the ribbon on a warehouse in northern China to provide fresh-produce deliveries in the area.

Meanwhile, consumers have got the winter holiday spirit on lock in sunny Spain. Shoppers took advantage of Black Friday deals on AliExpress to prepare for the upcoming festive season.

Freshippo Relaunches “Employee Sharing” in Beijing Amid Surging Grocery Orders  

Alibaba’s hypermart Freshippo restarted its “employee-sharing” program this week with hard-hit Beijing businesses following an  outbreak of COVID-19 cases.

The platform has hired workers from restaurants temporarily closed due to pandemic restrictions and will train them as grocery sorters or delivery personnel.

The grocery chain started the program in 2020 to cope with pandemic-related labor shortages. It also helps address the unemployment problem by giving idle workers flexible job arrangements and additional paychecks.

Close to 100 workers have applied for positions, and the platform will hire more workers from hard-hit industries, including cinemas and gyms.

Dalian Residents Welcome Taocaicai 

This week, Alibaba’s community marketplace business Taocaicai launched a new warehouse in the northern Chinese city of Dalian, Liaoning province.

It will offer groceries and fresh goods for residents living in seven districts and three counties in Dalian.

Shoppers could place their orders via Taobao, Taobao Deals, Alipay, Cainiao app or WeChat’s mini program before 10 pm and fetch their food the next day from their neighborhoods’ nearest picking-up points.

“The preparation period is shorter for the Dalian warehouse due to our mature business model,” said Chen Ming, head of supply chain at Taocaicai, in a statement in Mandarin.

 During the quarter that ended Sept. 30, 2022, Taocaicai’s gross merchandises value grew at over 40% year-over-year, and the percentage of Taocaicai orders generated through Taobao and Taobao Deals’ apps continued to grow year-over-year.

AliExpress Winter Holiday Decorations Top Black Friday Deals in Spain

Alibaba’s online marketplace AliExpress kicked off its Black Friday sales this week with promotions to get consumers in the winter holiday spirit. 

In Spain, one of the largest markets for AliExpress in Europe, the platform expects Christmas decorations to top the Black Friday charts. 

Sales for do-it-yourself (DIY) Christmas decorations in Spain have surged, with sales from homemade candle kits up by 162% month-over-month in November and handmade Christmas trees by 200%. 

Artificial snowflakes, Christmas hats, New Year’s Eve decorations and baking utensils also feature prominently, according to data from AliExpress.

The e-commerce platform launched savings packages for Christmas products and accessories in Spain to capture the holiday sales boom. 

Consumers can access special bundle offers, including packs of gloves, socks, and hats for €5.99.

China’s Livestreaming Farmers Harvest Views This 11.11 Shopping Season

During the world’s largest retail event earlier this month, over a million eyes turned to a chestnut farm in rural China as 37-year-old Han Wenliang livestreamed sales of her produce.

“We saw viewers transform from strangers to loyal fans,” she told Alizila of the 1.5 million consumers who tuned into her stream with key opinion leader (KOL) Zhu Dan on Alibaba’s business-to-consumer marketplace Taobao during the 11.11 Global Shopping Festival.

Taobao Live hosted over 100,000 livestreaming sessions from rural merchants, including many farmers, between Oct. 24 and Nov. 11 this year.

‘We see Taobao Live has introduced a new way of doing business for farmers and entrepreneurs,” said Chui Xue, President of Industry Development and Operation Center of Taobao and Tmall.

Han, who hails from a secluded corner of Hebei province, is both. Read more about her experience here

Africa’s Business Heroes Crowns 2022 Winner From Tanzania

Entrepreneurship competition Africa’s Business Heroes (ABH) announced its grand prize winner Elia Timotheo, founder of agri-tech startup East Africa Fruits Co, during a livestreamed grand finale in Johannesburg, South Africa, over the weekend.

In its fourth year, the competition, sponsored by the Jack Ma Foundation and Alibaba Philanthropy, shines a spotlight on talented African entrepreneurs working to make a difference in their communities.

Timotheo, who hails from Tanzania in east Africa, received a $300,000 grant to grow his business following a final pitch showdown between the top ten finalists.

Learn more about the winners here