Has Walmart finally figured out China?

© Jlhope

Another great blog from Cathy Morrow Roberson, on the Logistics Trends & Insights site, on how Walmart has re-energised its China strategy. Any visitor to China in the last 20 years will know how ubiquitous the US retail giant’s stores have become, but it hasn’t been a bed of roses for Walmart and there have been plenty of times during its 30-year presence in the country when it has looked to pull out. However, its investment in Chinese e-commerce platform JD.com appears to have given it a new lease of life, particularly through combining the supply chains of the online and bricks and mortar offerings. “When a customer places an order on JD.com, JD’s order management system will analyse data from both companies’ stock systems to determine whether a JD warehouse or Walmart store is closer to the customer, and dispatch a JD courier accordingly.”