Calbee has big ambitions for Frugra, claiming the brand will revolutionise breakfast in China.
Japanese snack company Calbee is to start selling its breakfast granola brand Frugra to Chinese consumers on Tmall Global in August, ahead of the general retail launch.
The move will be in partnership with Japan MD Center, operated by Alibaba Japan, a subsidiary of Chinese e-commerce site Alibaba.
Calbee has big ambitions for Frugra, claiming the brand will revolutionise breakfast in China.
Initially, Calbee plans to market its Frugra products via data accumulated by Alibaba, as well as taking advantage of the e-giant’s knowledge of Chinese consumer behaviour. Calbee also intends to develop more Frugra products, based on Alibaba’s consumer insight.
Production of Frugra for China will start in August at a new facility in Hokkaido, which will have the capacity to produce JPY4bn (US$35.9m) worth of granola each year.
The scale of the cross border e-commerce market between Japan and China has recently surpassed JPY1trn, according to Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and has been growing by 30% year on year.
