T2 opens Alibaba Tmall store

Australian tea retailer T2 Tea has opened an online storefront on Alibaba’s Tmall Global marketplace to cash in on Chinese demand for Australian products.

Tmall Global enables international brands to sell to Chinese consumers online, simplifying the export and retail process.

A curated range of products will be available to Chinese shoppers at t2tea.tmall.hk including homegrown tea blends such as T2 Tea’s Bondi tea, which includes lemon myrtle and native berries.

“It’s T2’s curiosity for taking the ancient tradition of tea culture in China and giving it a modern twist that we think is both intriguing and exciting for the Chinese consumer,” said Nicole Sparshott, T2 Global CEO.

First launched in Melbourne 20 years ago, T2 now has 100 stores across five markets. It entered the Asia market in January 2017 and now has four stores in Singapore.

“For a company that came from humble beginnings in Melbourne, launching on Tmall Global marks a key milestone in our mission to build a generation of tea lovers on every continent,” Sparshott said.

According to Alibaba, more than 14,500 international brands from 63 countries and regions sell on Tmall Global. For more than 80 per cent of those brands, their Tmall Global virtual store was their first foray into the China market.

The number of imported product categories on Tmall Global climbed nearly 50 per cent to 3,700 this year.

“The opening of T2 Tea’s Tmall Global store reflects the growing diversity in demand for premium Australian products,” said Maggie Zhou. “We’re excited to be working with such an iconic Australian brand to help them expand on the success they’ve already seen in Australia.”

So far there are 1,300 Australian and 400 New Zealand brands on Tmall and Tmall Global. The Chinese demand for Australian products was demonstrated during the company’s 11.11 sale last month.

Australia recorded its best performance to date ranking as the third highest selling country (outside of China) behind the United States and Japan. Last year, Australia ranked fourth, and fifth in 2015.