New CEO for Sun Art as Alibaba adjusts retail operations

Sun Art Retail Group, controlled by Alibaba Group Holding, has appointed a new chief executive as the e-commerce giant continues to consolidate its retail assets amid a restructuring and rising competition.

Hong Kong-listed Sun Art, a hypermarket business, said in a stock exchange filing on Tuesday Lin Xiaohai, former chief executive and executive director of the company, had been moved to another position with Alibaba. Shen Hui, previously a senior executive at French supermarket operator Auchan Retail, a former affiliated brand under Sun Art, has taken over the CEO role since Wednesday.

Alibaba acquired a controlling stake in Sun Art in 2020 from the billionaire Mulliez family, paying HK$28 billion to double its effective stake in the group to 72 per cent.

The deal was seen as a move to boost the e-commerce giant’s stranglehold in the offline retail sector as the Covid-19 pandemic intensified the integration of online and offline shopping.

The executive reshuffle came as Alibaba, which owns the Post, continues to adjust its offline retail businesses in the wake of a sweeping restructuring announced a year ago.

Alibaba CEO Eddie Wu Yongming, also chairman of Taobao and Tmall Group since last May, took over the CEO role of the combined e-commerce group in December, aiming to sharpen the focus on consumer services and experiences.

The firm was currently focused on its two core businesses, e-commerce and cloud computing, with non-core operations such as traditional physical retailing up for sale, company executives said in February.

Sun Art is the largest hypermarket operator in China, operating under the brands of RT-Mart, RT-Super, and M-Club. As of September 2023, it had a total of 485 hypermarkets, 19 superstores, and one membership store in the country, covering a total area of around 13.79 million square metres across 211 cities.

Last November, Alibaba said it was putting on hold its listing plan for supermarket chain Freshippo, citing poor market conditions. It also terminated the spin-off of its cloud business.

This week, the group cancelled the planned initial public offering of its Cainiao logistics unit.