JD.com: The Contribution of Richard Liu Qiangdong to the Chinese E-Commerce Industry

Richard Liu Qiangdong is one of the most popular entrepreneurs in China today. The billionaire, who has a net worth of around $7.5 billion, transformed the e-commerce sector in the country. He founded JD.com in 2004, and more than a decade later, it became one of the largest online retail stores in China, serving more than 300 million people. The company is in a fierce competition with other players in the e-commerce sector, especially Alibaba, but the founder of the company stated that they could handle the pressure and they will eventually make it to the top beating out their competitors in the industry. The company introduced a lot of innovation that contributed to the rising interest of the public in the e-commerce sector.

Being an entrepreneur is not the ultimate dream of the company's founder. Jingdong enrolled at the top university in Beijing to become a politician and not an entrepreneur. It was his dream to serve the public, so he decided to enroll where the previous government officials in China had studied. His interest in business came in after he saved a lot of money and invested it in a restaurant business. However, due to mismanagement, his business eventually closed down, and he had to think about an alternative way on how he could earn money. Later on, he studied programming when he had free time, and used his knowledge on computers to earn a little. After he graduated from the university in Beijing, he started another business – this time, selling computer parts to corporate networks.

His first store catered to local tech companies in Beijing, and through his managing skills, he was able to expand his business, opening new locations all around the country. He had several stores performing so well, and his business partners would always rely on his company whenever they are looking for a particular part. He was very sure that a great chunk of his fortune would come from his computer parts retail business, but it all came to an end after the SARS outbreak reached China. The Chinese government tried to prevent the disease from coming into their territory, but they failed. Instead, they tried to warn the public about the health risk of SARS and ordered all public establishments to close down to avoid the spread of the diseases. Richard Liu Qiangdong's business is among those which were closed down, and he could not do anything because it is what the government wanted.

Thinking how he could resell all of the items he has in his inventory, he decided to apply his programming skills and created a website where he uploaded photos of the items he wanted to sell along with the information on how much is it. His former clients started to buy from his online store, and he had the idea to expand the business to include more items to be sold, aside from computer parts. It signaled the birth of JD.com, and the company changed the way the Chinese people shop for their goods. The company started to include other merchandise in the list of items that they sell, and through the years, they managed to sign partnership contracts with different companies. Richard Liu Qiangdong later on invested in the company's logistics department, creating their own and serving millions of Chinese people living in far-flung areas. Today, JD.com is able to deliver packages to 90% of the country's territory, and more people from the remote corners of China are using their online platform to order things that are not common in their locality. The company help boosts the trade in the rural areas of the country, contributing significantly to the growth of the economy.