The products of Migros are apparently not well received by the Chinese: The Swiss retailer has secretly shut down its online shop, Orange Garden, in China. In addition to this, the retailer's entire range in Asia is to be streamlined, reported 20Minuten.
Company spokesman Patrick Stöpper announced that Migros intends to sell a smaller range of products in the Asian markets via online channels and third-party shops. "As a result, we will focus on individual product brands and will no longer pursue the umbrella brand Orange Garten in China," Stöpper told the newspaper.
High prices
One reason for the failure of the online shop could have been the high prices. Shower products or all-purpose cleaners were up to six times more expensive than the same items in Switzerland when Orange Garten was launched. It is unclear which products Migros intends to continue selling in China.
Migros launched the online shop two years ago. For this purpose, the company teamed up with Chinese online trading platform NetEase Kaola. This was taken over last September by Internet giant Alibaba for 2 billion dollars. At Orange Garten, the Chinese were able to buy almost everything from rösti to shampoo to detergent.
Chinese middle class targeted
With Orange Garden, Migros had set its sights on the Chinese middle class, which prefers "foreign products with proof of quality", as the company announced at the launch.
Source: 20min.ch