It is normal practice to use Tmall to test the Chinese market. Is H&M tinking of using Tmall to replace its physical stores?
As inventories rose and sales tanked in the fourth quarter, H&M announced it is picking up the pace on a transformation plan.
Q4 sales fell 4% to $5.97 billion from the same period a year ago and foot traffic to stores declined, according to a company press release.
CEO Karl-Johan Persson said the company would scale back its physical expansion and close some stores, but its collaboration with Alibaba is expanding.
H&M and H&M Home brands will begin selling on Tmall and the company is in “far advanced discussions” to sell the rest of H&M’s brands through the Chinese e-commerce marketplace, according to another press release.
Also last week, H&M rival Inditex reported a net sales rise of 10% to €17.96 billion ($21 billion) in the first nine months of fiscal 2017.
The Spanish apparel company, owner of Zara, also announced the rollout of same-day delivery, automated in-store pick-up points for online orders and next-day delivery in six markets, including in Spain, France, the U.K. and China.