Photo credit: Andy Feng / Shutterstock
Yan Xiaolei is the new CEO of Freshippo, the grocery arm of Alibaba Group, replacing its founder Hou Yi, a source familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.
Hou will be transitioning to a senior advisor role at the company, the source added. Yan was previously Freshippo’s CFO.
The development comes after Freshippo shelved a Hong Kong IPO due to poor market sentiment.
Launched in 2016, Freshippo currently runs over 360 stores in China. It aims to open 70 additional outlets this year, according to the report.
Alibaba recently reported a 5% year-on-year increase in overall revenue for the third quarter of its 2024 financial year, hitting US$36.7 billion.
In its most recent financial results announcement, Alibaba group CEO Eddie Wu said the company’s top priority is to “reignite the growth of our core businesses, ecommerce, and cloud computing.”
Seemingly part of this effort is Alibaba promoting younger executives to head divisions like cloud computing and core domestic commerce.
The group has seen an uptick in regulatory scrutiny over the past few years, which played into a 75% drop in shares from the company’s peak. This has led to increased competition from companies like PDD Holdings and ByteDance as well, the report noted.
See also: Asian tech feels the heat as regulators bare teeth
Editing by Lorenzo Kyle Subido
(And yes, we’re serious about ethics and transparency. More information here.)
Stay updated on the go with our mobile app.
Get latest insights with smoother, more personalized experience through TIA mobile app.
