The firm, like many others, has benefitted from Australia and New Zealand’s reputation for safe and high-quality products.
This led JD Worldwide to expand its partnership with the company to bring more products to the Chinese market such as a2’s infant formula, children’s formula, and adult milk powder.
Speaking to FoodNavigator-Asia, Longwu Jiang, general manager of maternal and baby products at JD FMCG said, “Premiumisation is a big trend we’ve seen among Chinese consumers, who enjoy our international brands.
“[Chinese] consumers are always searching for high-quality products. Three words are top of the mind for consumers buying baby products: Natural, safe, and nutritious,” he added.
Chinese market
China is the top priority market for a2 Milk, which first launched on JD in 2015.
JD provides the firm with customised marketing solutions, to increase the brand’s recognition among Chinese consumers.
For instance, “marketing for baby milk formula is unique in that it’s crucial to attract a constant stream of new customers. Customers who buy baby products will only do so for a limited time,” Jiang said.
He added that JD was able to provide extensive analysis of consumer shopping behaviour.
One example was during a month-long campaign held this year where it identified customers who had indicated interest in a2 products but had not yet made an order.
Coupons were then sent to these high potential customers, leading to one million visits to a2 Milk online store on and a return on investment ROI 3.6 times higher than average.
Popular milk
According to Chris Cui, head of JD Worldwide: “The a2 Milk Company’s premium dairy products are an increasingly popular choice for Chinese parents across the country.”
On June 18 this year, the peak day of JD.com’s annual 18-day “6.18” anniversary sales festival saw sales of a2 products on the day increased 210% compared to the previous year.
a2 Milk was the top-selling brand on JD Worldwide, and the brand’s platinum baby milk powder was the best-selling product.
JD said in addition to a2 Milk, popular brands on its platform including Swisse, Blackmores, Devondale, Penfolds and Jacob’s Creek.