Accor and Alibaba Group enter into strategic partnership
The two innovative companies join forces to foster digitalization of global tourism |
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Accor and Alibaba Group enter into strategic partnership
The two innovative companies join forces to foster digitalization of global tourism |
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Accor, a world-leading hospitality group, and Alibaba Group, the world’s largest retail commerce business, today announced a strategic collaboration to develop a series of digital applications and loyalty programs to improve the consumer and traveler experience over the next five years. The announcement was made at a special ceremony in Beijing during the 2019 China International Import Expo. Accor was among the delegation of French companies accompanying President Emmanuel Macron on a state visit to China.
The strategic collaboration will leverage Alibaba’s nearly 700 million consumers across its China retail marketplaces to enable more Chinese travelers to enjoy Accor’s world-class consumer offerings. It will allow for a seamless integration of Accor’s customer journeys within Alibaba’s comprehensive ecosystem. Alibaba’s travel arm Fliggy will allow consumers to book hotels, access catering services, book entertainment and take advantage of other lifestyle services. Payments can be made using Alipay, a digital payment service operated by Alibaba affiliate Ant Financial.
Accor will also offer Chinese consumers a hassle-free hotel experience through its “Haoke” program – geared towards Chinese travelers. Haoke, which means “Welcome” in Chinese, is a certification program that ensures Accor’s hotels are ready to welcome Chinese guests by incorporating Chinese-language, Chinese dishes on menus, Chinese-speaking staff, and other services and payment systems that meet the needs of Chinese travelers.
The collaboration between Accor and Alibaba will be instrumental to the roll-out of Accor’s soon-to-be-launched lifestyle loyalty program, ALL - Accor Live Limitless. Alibaba will make the program’s services and benefits available to its massive consumer base, leveraging its ecosystem, consumer insights and digital marketing capabilities, accelerating the roll-out of ALL in China and around the world.
Sebastien Bazin, Accor’s Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, said, “We are excited to enter into this strategic global partnership with Alibaba, a leading global technology company in the world. China’s importance to the world’s tourism industry and this key collaboration with Alibaba will symbolically strengthen economic ties between China and France, while giving Chinese travelers access to exciting events and benefits through ALL – Accor Live Limitless.”
Daniel Zhang, Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Alibaba Group, said: “Over the past 20 years, Alibaba has formed two flywheels with one focused on consumers and the other on enterprises. Our consumer-facing business facilitates and stimulates consumption, of which travel consumption is an important segment. Through the Alibaba Business Operating System, we enable tourism industry partners such as Accor to fully digitize their business operations, from sales to marketing, brand building to member management and service innovations.”
Gary Rosen, Chairman and Chief Operating Officer, Accor Greater China, said: “I am immensely excited to share our collaboration with Alibaba with the international community. This is a milestone collaboration endorsed by two forward-looking nations, and extremely significant for Accor. Alibaba is the world’s leading e-commerce giant spearheading the global digital scene. Through our partnership, we will revolutionize the industry through our disruptive lifestyle loyalty program, ALL - Accor Live Limitless. ALL forms an integral part of Accor’s aggressive and visionary digital strategy leveraging the growing Chinese travel market. This collaboration with Alibaba will be a significant move for both companies as we work towards achieving common goals while offering an increased number of surprisingly dynamic options for Chinese world travelers. Our ultimate ambition is to add unforgettable value every day in our customers’ lives - no matter where they live, work or play.”
Angel Zhao, President of Fliggy and Senior Vice President of Alibaba Group, said: “We welcome this newly formed strategic collaboration with Accor as a further step towards the digitalization of the tourism industry. We look forward to enabling the hundreds of millions of Chinese consumers in Alibaba’s ecosystem to discover the world, and to enjoy stress-free and memorable travel with new digital experiences. By working with Accor, we will also be able to introduce a younger generation of consumers to the established Accor portfolio of hotels and lifestyle offerings.”
The collaboration between Alibaba and Accor follows the success of Accor’s flagship store on Fliggy, which was established in 2016. For several consecutive years, Accor amassed outstanding rankings and revenue among international hotel groups during Alibaba’s landmark 11.11 Global Shopping Festival. The announcement of a strategic collaboration between the two companies represents a new page in their relationship, which will most importantly benefit Chinese travelers.
ABOUT ACCORAccor is a world-leading augmented hospitality group offering unique experiences in 4,900 hotels and residences across 110 countries. The Group has been acquiring hospitality expertise for more than 50 years, resulting in an unrivaled portfolio of brands, from luxury to economy, supported by one of the most attractive loyalty programs in the world.
Beyond accommodation, Accor enables new ways to live, work, and play, by blending food and beverage with nightlife, wellbeing, and co-working. It also offers digital solutions that maximize distribution, optimize hotel operations and enhance the customer experience.
Accor is deeply committed to sustainable value creation and plays an active role in giving back to planet and community via its Planet 21 – Acting Here program and the Accor Solidarity endowment fund, which gives disadvantaged groups access to employment through professional training.
Accor SA is publicly listed on the Euronext Paris Stock Exchange (ISIN code: FR0000120404) and on the OTC Market (Ticker: ACRFY) in the United States. For more information visit accor.com. Or become a fan and follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
ABOUT ALIBABA GROUPAlibaba Group’s mission is to make it easy to do business anywhere. The company aims to build the future infrastructure of commerce. It envisions that its customers will meet, work and live at Alibaba, and that it will be a company that lasts at least 102 years.
A business of Alibaba Group, Fliggy is an online travel services platform with a mission of carrying out the "Global Fun" component of Alibaba's globalization strategy. Currently, Fliggy brings together more than 400 airlines and air travel agents, more than 8,000 scenic spots, more than 600,000 hotels and inns as well as hundreds of thousands of local entertainment activities. Leveraging Alibaba's ecosystem, Fliggy also provides merchants in the travel industry with a rich digital platform to help them engage with Chinese travelers. With diverse travel service offerings and digital innovations, Fliggy acts as a one-stop shop for Chinese travelers seeking the ultimate travel experience.
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