Joybuy – the e-commerce site and app owned by China’s biggest retailer by revenue, JD.com – looks set to expand into fresh food in the UK, latest job listings suggest.
The online retailer – which launched in Europe in March – offers an extensive range of ambient and frozen foods, household, baby, beverages, personal care, beauty, health, pet, and nicotine products from both major brands and Morrisons own label, as well as consumer electronics, appliances, homeware, clothing and DIY goods.
Fresh produce has remained notably absent from its category coverage. However, a job listing strongly suggests that could be about to change.
Joybuy is seeking a fresh category operations manager, responsible for “overseeing the end-to-end operations of the fresh produce supply chain, ensuring products are sourced, handled, and delivered efficiently while maintaining quality, food safety, and service standards”.
A description of the UK-based role states the successful candidate will “co-ordinate with growers, packers, logistics providers, retailers, and internal teams to optimise product availability, minimise waste, and achieve commercial objectives”.
They will work with third parties to “plan inventory, replenishment, and demand fulfilment to maximise product availability while minimising shrinkage and waste”, the listing adds.
It is one of around 158 open roles based in the UK, and among close to 1,000 vacancies outside China across both Joybuy and JD.com’s wider operations.
“As Joybuy and JoyExpress continue to grow and develop, we are hiring for new roles to join us across Europe – we encourage people to apply directly through either our website, or LinkedIn,” a JD.com spokesperson told The Grocer.
“We’re building comprehensive capabilities covering retail, warehousing, fulfilment and retail services across Europe, Asia and beyond, providing our customers with a fast, efficient, high-quality and reliable experience,” they added.
In July, JD.com bought a grade-A office building in west London called Systems, from UAE-based BlueFive Capital, to use as its UK headquarters. The 127,000 sq ft building in Brook Green was constructed in the 1930s and has recently been redeveloped.
Other roles the company is seeking to fill include head of brand marketing, the job involving “defining what Joybuy stands for, how that translates per market, and where the brand can credibly win against both marketplace incumbents and cross-border competitors”; head of compliance; head of legal; and several engineering roles specialising in AI, machine learning, search and recommendations.
Vacancies also include a director role for the business’s international marketplace and marketplace partner ecosystem manager, which come after The Grocer revealed that Joybuy was readying to introduce third-party sellers to its online stores across Europe.
The company is also seeking a social media & influencers manager, to “develop Joybuy UK’s social media presence, lead influencer partnerships and execute offline activations that drive customer engagement, brand awareness and commercial performance”.
Applicants are told that the company is “expanding its international footprint through a digitally intelligent, cross-border supply chain and world-class logistics network, supported by platforms such as Joybuy, which brings trusted products to customers worldwide”.
Joybuy has been collating data on what its customer purchase at supermarkets including Tesco, Sainsbury’s Waitrose, Asda, Morrisons, Aldi, Lidl and Boots as part of a promotion that gives its customers loyalty points and discounts in return for scanning their supermarket receipts.
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