AliExpress, the e-commerce wing of Chinese behemoth Alibaba (NYSE: BABA), has scored a major goal by signing former England captain and soccer legend David Beckham as its global brand ambassador.
This savvy move aims to challenge the rising global presence of PDD Holdings’ Temu and fashion upstart Shein, while countering slumping e-commerce sales in China.
Alibaba’s international division, including AliExpress, saw revenues rocket 45% year-on-year in Q1 2024 to 27.45 billion yuan, outpacing domestic-focused siblings like Tmall and Taobao.
AliExpress is also set to sponsor the UEFA Euro 2024 soccer tournament this summer, planning to splash out millions on deals and discounts to woo online shoppers. Among the goodies, lucky AliExpress app users might snag tickets to the matches.
Launching on Monday, AliExpress will unveil an ad campaign starring Beckham, encouraging buyers to “score more” with the platform.