Beijing Business Daily News (Reporter Hu Jingrong) On December 17th, Alibaba Group announced that the company and another minority shareholder have agreed to sell 100% of Intime's equity to a consortium of buyers composed of members of the Yagor Group and Intime management team.
The announcement shows that Alibaba currently holds approximately 99% of the equity of Intime. The total proceeds from Alibaba's sale of Intime amounted to approximately 7.4 billion yuan (1 billion US dollars). Alibaba expects to record a loss of approximately 9.3 billion yuan (1.3 billion US dollars) due to the sale of Intime.
In response to this, Yintai responded to a Beijing Business Daily reporter that the joint investment of Yagor Group and Yintai management in Yintai aims to "strengthen the chain and supplement the chain" and develop Yintai together for the future. Yintai Department Store will jointly inject resources with the support of Yagor Group in the future, continuing to provide high-quality retail shopping experiences for consumers.
According to data, in 2014, Alibaba Group made its first investment in Intime. In 2017, Yintai Commercial launched privatization. After entering the Alibaba system, Intime embarked on a digital transformation, establishing INTIME 365, the first digital paid membership system in China's department store industry, expanding online and offline service scenarios, exploring business innovation and upgrading consumer experience.
Up to now, Yintai Business Group has more than 60 department stores and a number of projects to be opened. It has achieved online omni channel sales of Meow Street APP, "Yintai Department Store" WeChat applet, "Yintai Department Store" Alipay applet, and other digital members have exceeded 40 million.
Alibaba stated that selling all of its equity in Intime Department Store will clarify its strategic focus on core business development. E-commerce and "cloud+AI" will be the two most critical development directions for the future.