OREANDA-NEWS. Nestle has strengthened its global capabilities in e-commerce by signing a partnership with Alibaba in China, to grow online sales, build key brands and offer new products to millions of consumers.

Nestle has introduced products including Nido milk powder, Damak chocolate and Nescafe Dolce Gusto BMW MINI coffee machines on Tmall.com, China’s largest shopping website for brands and retailers. Using Taobao.com, the country’s largest shopping site overall, Nestle is expanding its distribution in rural areas.

Nestle e-commerce successes to date include the Nespresso online boutique, and the recent global launch of super-premium chocolate brand Cailler using Amazon as the primary retailer.

Sebastien Szczepaniak, Vice President of Group Sales and eBusiness, said that Nestle’s online sales are growing more than 25% per year.

"Moreover, offline purchases are increasingly influenced by what we see online, so brand building has gone beyond having good television advertising and nice packaging. Our ability to build brands on any touchpoint, be it digital or analogue, is vital," he said.