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US retail giant Walmart is teaming up with Chinese on-demand delivery giant Meituan, promising speedy door-to-door service on the mainland, four months after it sold its stake JD.com, winding down the long-time partnership.
Walmart's China unit said on its official WeChat account that all of its stores across the country are now listed on Meituan's platform, making groceries and other goods available for immediate delivery.
Meituan vice-president Xiao Kun said that by using the Shangou service, or "express shopping" in English, "everything arrives at [the customer's] home in 30 minutes, anytime, anywhere".
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Zhu Jun, Walmart's chief merchandising officer in China, called the collaboration "an effective supplement to Walmart's omnichannel operations".
Pedestrians walk past a signage for Walmart at its branch store in Beijing on October 15, 2015. Photo: Reuters alt=Pedestrians walk past a signage for Walmart at its branch store in Beijing on October 15, 2015. Photo: Reuters>
In addition to providing delivery services, the goal of the partnership is to improve digital marketing and explore the business model of warehouse supermarkets, among others, Walmart said in a statement.
The announcement comes months after the US retail giant dumped its JD.com shares to focus on building up its improving China operations. Walmart said it would continue its "commercial relationship" with JD.
As of Tuesday, Walmart and the company's warehouse retailer Sam's Club still maintain listings on JD. They also have independent apps and mini-programs on WeChat, the super app from Tencent Holdings.
Walmart said its online operations contributed to nearly half of its sales in China.
In 2016, when the world's largest retailer was struggling to adapt to the China market, the partnership with JD gave it a fresh start. As part of the agreement, JD.com took the ownership of the Yihaodian online marketplace from Walmart, while the American retailer acquired a 5 per cent stake in JD. Later that year, Walmart increased its holdings to 10.8 per cent.
In March this year, Walmart held 9.4 per cent of JD.com, making it the second largest shareholder after JD founder Richard Liu Qiangdong, with 11.2 per cent, according to a JD financial disclosure. Walmart raised roughly US$3.6 billion from the divestment, Bloomberg reported in August.