JD.com launching “7Fresh” food stores, offering 30 minute home delivery

JD.com has announced that it is launching its new “7Fresh” physical stores in China, which will complement its online food delivery service.

In a statement issued today (4 January), JD.com said: “Unlike any grocery experience in the country, the clean, spacious stores will be stocked with thousands of fresh products, including fruit, flowers, imported meat and freshly-caught seafood prepared and cooked on site. These stores create an offline experience that complements JD’s reputation for delivering the highest quality fresh food right to the doorsteps of its over 266.3 million customers.”

The company added that customers “can either take goods to go, or have them delivered to their homes in 30 minutes”.

The new-concept stores will be loaded with a range of technologies. These will include ‘magic mirrors’ that sense when customers pick up an item of produce, and automatically provide information on a screen about its source, as well as nutritional information, are now being tested. The stores will also soon feature “smart shopping carts” that can follow customers as they browse the aisles, allowing them to shop “hands-free”.

JD.com added: “Items can be scanned and bagged through traditional checkout or self-checkout. 7FRESH stores accept payment via cash, card or easy mobile payment using the 7FRESH app. Self-checkout offers the option of payment using a facial recognition system connected to the 7FRESH app.”

JD.com has been offering fresh food online since 2012. In January 2016, the company launched JD Fresh as an independent fresh food business unit.