Apple Is Pushing Store Openings In China

Apple Inc.’s is devoted to establish almost 40 retail stores in the Chinese market. The company has eyed October 2016 as the potential month to achieve its target. The company has now established its 33^rd outlet now in Qingdao. Apple Insider, which is considered to be a credible source for Apple related news, has confirmed that the launch of the store is scheduled for January 31^st. This will be the fifth store opened by the company in a time span of a month which is in compliance with their expansion plans.

It now looks like that the tech giant is solely devoted by the potential of China due to its strong consumer market and growth. This will help the company to grow in the long run. The Apple iPhone giant has been successful in opening stores in the Chinese market in cities like Hong Kong, Dalian, Nanjing, Chengdu, Beijing, along with the “Green City of Nanning” so far.

The recent store by Apple will now be located in Qingdao’s MixC Mall that is located at 6A Shandong Road, of the Shinan District that will have a massive showroom. As per the speculation, the new store will be having several tutorials right after its opening. The idea behind these tutorials is to equip the users about how to use the Apple products.

The move certainly gives birth to curiosity about the look of the upcoming Apple Store along with when it will actually become operational. The reason why Apple has narrowed its focus to China is because it considers the region to be the best market for the company in the times to come. Moreover, it has also assisted the company in adopting an innovative architectural hierarchy at all the company’s stores in the region.

This has actually become possible because of Jony Ive along with Angela Ahrendts who is the chief retail officer at the tech giant; both these individuals are trying their best to ensure that all Apple Stores remain consistent and have the same persona like all other Apple Stores all over the globe. This will help them to be a class apart from all international and local competitors.

All the stores that are currently being launched in China have been aided with tools that are found in all Apple Stores. This includes Genius Bars, JointVentures, and workshop along with other services present at their retail store. Considering the pace with which new Apple Stores are being established in the Chinese market, it now seems that the tech behemoth will become successful in meeting its goal of having 40 stores in the region before October arrives.

Hence in a nutshell, AAPL is playing quite smart by coming up with more stores in the Chinese market as the region has immense growth potential that will assist them in churning revenues in the long run. Moreover, Apple is also trying its best to make a mark in India considering it to be an emerging market with immense potential of growth.

Alibaba's China Charm Fading Away

Due to obstacles in the way of Alibaba in its homeland, China might not be an asset to Alibaba anymore

It is a well known fact that Alibaba Group Holding posted a record breaking Initial Public Offering (IPO) in history two years ago. IPO of the Chinese tech giant was the biggest ever. During that time, the company profited from being a ‘proxy’ for a Chinese economy that shareholders and investors were counting on. This majorly contributed towards the IPO back then. However the reason of as to why Alibaba posted a massive IPO is now considered as a liability just 16 months later than that.

It cannot be denied that Alibaba Group is a giant of a company not only in China but the world. Currently, the firm is valued at a massive $230 billion or more in the market. But Bloomberg reports that it has lost nearly $29 billion in market capitalization in January alone. It was not only because of the company’s push for market capitalization but investors and shareholders were whining over the dependence of the e-commerce market on China. China’s economy was growing at its slowest pace since 2009 and this resulted in slowing growth, falling market, and weakening the value of its home currency.

It is believed that the shares have returned to the price of IPO and as of now it is not performing well in the New York Stock Exchange Composite Index as well as Bloomberg China US Equity Index. For the first time in a very long time, Alibaba stocks were said to be underperforming in the market and this worried the investors and shareholders. They were concerned whether Alibaba is threatened with the recent entry of JD.com in the market or the charm of domination the Chinese e-commerce industry is fading away.

Alibaba is expected to announce its quarterly earnings come Thursday and it is believed that the company will post a revenue growth of 27 percent only which is the lowest since June 2012. The sales that the company made in China increased in the last three months to a massive 83 percent. This further urged the owner of Alibaba, Jack Ma, to continue with its international market expansion which also included Lyft Inc. which is a ride sharing service. Also, the Chinese giant recently acquired the leading newspaper, South China Morning Post.

According to an analysts at Arete Research Service LLP based in Hong Kong, Li Muzhi, stated “Investors largely see Alibaba as a proxy for China’s economy, and right now there’s just not a lot of good news. Alibaba has been trying to branch out revenue streams, but that takes time to develop.”

The government, investors, and the company officials knew that Alibaba was likely to be hit by a storm due to the dying economy of the country. As JD.com is a new entry which is also covering the loopholes left by Alibaba, it is performing way better and the revenue growth is promising regardless of the country’s economical and financial situation.

Jack Ma already warned the shareholders in November that the coming one year can be a rough patch for Alibaba. Several tech giants in the region would struggle to perform in the market as the Chinese government just tried to rebalance its economy. In an exclusive interview to Bloomberg, Jack Ma stated that he is looking for opportunities where the Chinese online retailer generates half of its revenues from the international markets. As of now, Alibaba has little or no presence in the international markets and it is trying to make its name in the foreign countries.

The founder and chairman also announced that the strategy to improve its revenue growth and international expansion included 28 deals which were valued at a massive $17.3 billion.

Bloomberg reported “The company invested in the movie ‘Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation,’ appointed directors for its operations in France and Germany, and expanded its online payment system Alipay to more than 100 countries.” Alibaba is now focused to include a few of the largest American brands on its online marketplaces in the near future as Chinese online shoppers prefer buying international products. It is believed that the international expansion strategy can be done using acquisitions and deals as well as organic growth through its services.

This is the reason of as to why Bloomberg reported that China might not be the same market for Alibaba as it was previously. The market and economy is not helping the company to do wonders whereas Alibaba is focused to improve its foreign market status and position.