JD.com, Alibaba's largest rival in the Chinese e-commerce market, has invested almost $400 million into Farfetch, a fast-growing online marketplace for luxury fashion boutiques.
It will see JD become one of the largest shareholders of Farfetch, with founder Richard Liu joining the online firm's board.
Neves, who serves as chief executive and co-chairman at Farfetch, said the new partnership with JD.com "addresses the [mainland] market's challenges by combining the Farfetch brand and curation with the scale and influence of the foremost Chinese e-commerce giant".
In addition, Farfetch users in China will also gain access to a variety of services from JD Finance.
"China is the world's second-largest luxury market, and we are delighted to have such a respected partner".
For Farfetch, the benefits include the ability to tap into JD's logistics, Internet finance and technology capabilities to drive additional traffic and boost sales.
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JD is looking to Farfetch to help it secure luxury shoppers, a market it estimates to be worth $80 billion. Both the entities will work together on marketing, logistics and technology solutions to build the brand in China, while Farfetch will continue to be the customer-facing brand.
The announcement comes as JD attaches greater importance to high-end luxury and fashion to meet the huge demand among its upwardly mobile customers.
"All of these things [Farfetch] doesn't have on a global basis and they certainly don't have in China", Winston Cheng, head of JD's worldwide business, told Reuters.
Founded by Portuguese entrepreneur José Neves in 2008, privately held Farfetch has partnered directly with more than 700 luxury fashion brands and boutiques on its online marketplace.
"This partnership with Farfetch further extends our lead in the battle for the future of China's upwardly mobile consumers". But China comprises only 10 percent of its global revenue despite China being the world's second-largest luxury market, and the company has been busy raising funds for further expansion. London-based Farfetch already has operations in the country, but the deal is meant to expand them.
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