China's £120bn retail king is ‘ready to rumble'. But can it crack Britain?

Few in the UK will know the name Jingdong, despite it being one of the world's biggest retailers with annual revenues of nearly $160bn (£120bn).
Yet that could soon be about to change. Jingdong – or JD.com as it is more commonly known – has its sights set on Britain.
The Beijing-headquartered company has embarked on an ambitious hiring spree, poaching talent from the likes of Tesco, Ocado, Amazon, Lidl and Holland & Barrett, and has launched a trial of an online retail brand called Joybuy ahead of an official rollout by the end of this year.
It marks a major expansion into the UK for the global retail titan, which has around 600m annual shoppers across the world and employs almost 700,000 people. Richard Qiangdong Liu, its founder and chairman, is one of China's richest people, with a net worth reported to be more than $6bn.
While little known to shoppers outside of Asia, JD.com is a household name and one of the world's largest online shopping empires.
It runs an Amazon-style online 'everything shop' in China, where you can order foods, clothing and goods online and get them delivered to your door. In the UK, it is likely to offer a narrower set of products but still attempt to crack the retail market.
The company has so far been tight-lipped on its strategy for the UK, but it has telegraphed its designs on Britain's shores for some time. It emerged as a potential suitor for the electrics retailer Currys last year when it was up for sale, but eventually walked away from the process.
Its looming entry into Britain comes at a precarious time for Chinese retail giants amid Donald Trump's trade war. Punishing tariffs may force more Chinese groups to seek other markets outside of the US, with Britain and Europe often seen as likely candidates for expansion.
Even before the tariffs, JD.com has been steadily expanding outside of its Chinese heartlands as the domestic economy stutters, building ties with the US and Europe.
Walmart, the American retail giant, previously owned a $3.7bn stake in JD.com, which it sold down completely in 2024 amid falling returns. Its shares have fallen more than 43pc in the last five years.
The ensuing international push has already seen it grow in Europe, opening, for example, a 27,000sq ft automated warehouse in Poland near the German border.
Gap in the market
David Sables, chief executive of retail advisers Sentinel Management Consultants, says the prospect of a sustained investment by JD.com into the UK could prove worrisome for established supermarkets.
'Do they have the capability to make a big mark? Absolutely they do. Is there room in the UK for another serious player in the discounting area? Absolutely.
'If they go some way to competing on price with Aldi and Lidl, they can earn shoppers.'
The trial website of Joybuy so far offers a wide range of ambient goods and frozen foods, as well as soft drinks and alcohol alongside electronics and other non-food products.
Currently, it stocks a vast range of imported Asian foods alongside items from some well-known brands such as Tony's Chocolonely and Pip & Nut. No fresh food products are listed and it is understood the retailer has not yet decided whether it will sell them.
Matthew Nobbs, a former Lidl and Holland & Barrett executive who has been hired as JD.com's chief merchandise officer for the UK, said on LinkedIn he was 'getting ready to rumble in the UK for one of China's biggest success stories'.
Sables believes there is a 'gap in the market' for the likes of JD because Aldi and Lidl offer very limited online capabilities. This was a deliberate move by the German chains which has helped them heap pressure on the 'big four' supermarkets.
'The fact of the matter is, as soon as you start making those investments [into online retail], that's money you can't put into price,' says Sables. 'By keeping their model really simple – that is how they've managed to achieve their everyday low price.'
Conversely, JD.com globally prides itself on rapid next-day delivery – a service it says it will be able to offer in the UK with the launch of Joybuy. It touts itself as 'a leading technology and service provider with supply chain at its core'.
Trade war turmoil
It comes as many Chinese firms have been battered by Trump's escalating trade wars. The US president has imposed searingly high 145pc tariffs on China, throwing Chinese companies that export to the US into chaos.
JD.com has thrown its backing behind domestic Chinese manufacturers hammered by Trump's tariffs, vowing to purchase about $27bn (£20bn) worth of goods from China's exporters this year to help them shift their sales to the Chinese market.
Mr Trump has also closed a tax loophole which was allowing Chinese companies to import cheap products into the US, sparking fears of so-called 'dumping' of cheap products by Chinese retailers in the UK.
However, a person familiar with the situation says JD.com will be sourcing the majority of its food products for sale in the UK domestically.
'The ambition for Joybuy is to be a local retailer, locally sourcing as many quality and authentic products as possible. That's better for customers and the market,' they say.
It is understood talks have already been set up between JD.com and some major British food and drink suppliers.
A 'one-stop' shop
While there may be a gap in the market for JD.com, Clive Black, an analyst at Shore Capital, warns that existing discount retailers such as B&M have struggled to maintain their upwards trajectory in the wake of the cost of living crisis.
He also points to attempts by Amazon to crack the British grocery market which did not go to plan. The online giant last year brought its Amazon Fresh grocery service to an end across a swathe of UK cities.
'It's realised that pure play-online is not economic,' says Black.
Crucially, he argues, the majority of British shoppers are still very attached to physical stores, even at the discount end of the market.
'Still 87pc of the population go to shops,' says Black. 'People like [Ocado boss] Tim Steiner have talked absolute nonsense over the years about how everyone's going to shop online. And it's just not true, it hasn't happened.'
Sables adds: 'There are still a lot of people who want to pick up their bread, have a look at it, pack up their avocados, feel them and put them in the basket.
'It's not just about price. It has to be a plausible one-stop shop.'
A spokesman for JD.com said: 'Joybuy is currently in a testing phase of its self-operated online retail business model. The plan is for an official launch of the Joybuy platform by the end of 2025.
'JD.com's operations in Europe are built on the same principles that define our success in China: delivering high-quality products at great prices, backed by fast and reliable delivery.'

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