Macy's Forms JV With Fung Retailing To Test E-commerce In China

(RTTNews) - Macy's, Inc. (M) announced that it has formed a free-standing joint venture with Hong Kong-based Fung Retailing Limited, a privately-held enterprise, to explore retailing in China.

The joint venture, which is 65 percent owned by Macy's and 35 percent owned by Fung Retailing, will start with an e-commerce pilot. For Macy's, already a popular destination for Chinese-Americans and Chinese visitors to the United States, the joint venture is expected to develop significant new learnings on customer preferences and buying patterns within China.

Under the joint venture, Macy's said it plans to begin selling in China in late 2015 through an e-commerce presence on Alibaba Group's Tmall Global, their premiere marketplace that connects overseas branded retailers to Chinese consumers.

To be based in Hong Kong and called Macy's China Limited, the Macy's-Fung joint venture will curate a Macy's online merchandise assortment especially for Chinese customers and fulfill Tmall Global orders from Hong Kong through local logistics channels, including LF Logistics, an affiliate of Fung Retailing. Alipay will be a primary payment channel for Macy's e-commerce offerings in China.

Macy's China Limited will be led by Kent Anderson, who will serve as managing director. Anderson is a veteran Macy's, Inc. executive and long-time president of macys.com. Fung Retailing's Executive Director Sabrina Fung will represent Fung Retailing's interest on the board of the joint venture company.

No physical Macy's stores are planned for China at this time, but may be considered in the future based on the company's experience in its e-commerce pilot.