Chinese e-commerce firm Mia.com is targeting middle-class parents. (Photo : Reuters)
Four-year-old e-commerce firm Mia.com is carving out a niche spot in baby products, helping it take off and foray into a market that is dominated by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Tencent's JD.com Inc.
Currently, the firm is valued at around $1 billion after it received a funding from Baidu Inc. worth $150 million in September. In 2014, its transaction volume reached 400 million yuan.
Sun Wei, Mia.com's chief financial officer, said: "Unlike large platforms, which cover a wide range of categories, we are dedicated to helping middle-class families access the best mom and baby products from abroad."
Sun also added that its site has five million regular users.
The startup is also expected to grow more rapidly as the government has ended its one-child policy last month. Experts are predicting that the "baby boom" will give the firm a bigger stream of revenues.
"For most Chinese parents, a new-born baby transforms them from price-sensitive buyers to quality-oriented consumers," Sun said. "They want to give their kids the best brands."
Mia.com is not the only firm targeting middle-class parents. Alibaba and JD.com have also launched their own e-commerce platforms dedicated to baby products such as infant formula and diapers.
Back in 2007, the site Babytree.com has also started rolling out a similar service, kicking off as an "advice site" for Chinese mothers.
Sun pointed out that the firm is banking on their supply chain policy, which allows them to source quality products directly from popular brands at lower prices.
"Unlike rivals, which just function as a platform to connect buyers with sellers, we sell products ourselves," Sun said. "But we manage to cut out the middlemen and directly source brands."
