Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. will invest about $692 million in Intime Retail Group Co., an owner of department stores and supermarkets, as China’s biggest e- commerce operator integrates online and offline shopping.
Via Tim Sensenig, Cathy Roberson, eft - Logistics & Supply Chain Business Intelligence
I have previously mentioned why I think it is imperative that pure-play ecommerce retailers get a physical 'bricks and mortar' presence (see http://www.eft.com/column/why-every-retailer-needs-be-fully-omnichannel-which-includes-having-bricks-mortar-stores)
This news from China from Alibaba is exactly the correct strategy that is needed. How long until a similar announcement from Amazon in the USA or Europe?