Unilever has opened an online store on JD.com’s cross-border e-commerce platform, JD Worldwide, according to The Wall Street Journal. The move will enable the Dutch manufacturer to sell its Ponds, Dove, Lux and Vaseline brands in China as imports, thus avoiding the lengthy registration process required by Chinese law.
The FMCG giant plans to use the new platform as a soft launch for brands and products not yet available on the Chinese market.
“If brands sell very well, we will import them in bulk,” and then sell them on other e-commerce platforms in China,” said Andy Li, Director of Unilever’s China e-commerce business. First to launch via the site will be a selection of Lux shampoos that are best-sellers in Japan.
The company is already present on JD.com’s direct sales website as well as rival Tmall and its online sales total more than CNY1 billion a year in China.