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On September 20, Taobao Flash Sale quietly launched its in-store group buying business in Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Jiaxing, simultaneously connecting three traffic portals—Taobao, Alipay, and Amap—and stirring the market with subsidies like “starting from 9.9 yuan to eat at big brands.” This move comes just five months after Alibaba upgraded “Hourly Delivery” to Taobao Flash Sale, marking a key leap from “home delivery” to “in-store” in Alibaba’s local life strategy.
Unlike the blitzkrieg in the food delivery track, in-store group buying is a protracted war testing ecosystem synergy and user mindset. Taobao Flash Sale didn’t start from scratch; it leverages 300 million monthly transaction buyers and millions of merchants from its food delivery business, plus traffic synergy within the Alibaba ecosystem, to break into Meituan’s dominant in-store market. The outcome will not only determine if Taobao Flash Sale can close the “home + in-store” loop but also reshape the local life service competition landscape.
Behind the 58-Day Launch: Demand-Driven Rapid Rollout
Taobao Flash Sale’s in-store group buying set a record in the local life industry—only 58 days from decision to launch. This efficiency stems from strong demand from users and merchants, plus resource reuse within Alibaba. During this summer’s food delivery war, Taobao Flash Sale’s daily order peak exceeded 120 million, building a large user base. Data showed many users asked about self-pickup when ordering delivery, and some hoped for in-store deals. “Users found delivery cheaper than in-store, so they naturally wanted in-store group buying,” a Taobao Flash Sale insider said. Merchants, especially chain restaurants, wanted to drive dine-in business with platform traffic. A Shenzhen chain tea brand manager noted they received BD invites in early August: “We already do group buying on other platforms—more channels mean more growth.”
The core to rapid launch is resource reuse. Taobao Flash Sale didn’t build a new offline team; it reused food delivery BD and merchant service teams, only抽调ing骨干 from Alibaba businesses. This “light start” reduced trial costs. For traffic, Alibaba went all out: Amap’s 170 million daily active users (DAUs) drive in-store traffic, Alipay’s 1.04 billion monthly active users (MAUs) handle redemption, and Taobao’s booming DAU from the delivery war supports planned consumption. The three platforms complement each other: Amap focuses on “destination consumption,” Alipay on “redemption management,” and Taobao on “family weekend meals.”
Pilot cities were chosen strategically: Shanghai (Ele.me’s stronghold, benchmarking), Shenzhen (Taobao Flash Sale’s delivery逆袭 market), and Jiaxing (representing third-tier cities). All have many migrants, ideal for testing cross-regional consumption during the upcoming National Day Golden Week. Initial categories are high-frequency FMCG like tea, desserts, and meals, with discounts as low as 30% (e.g., Gu Man Long, Bao Zhu Gong), aiming to quickly attract users.
Three-Way Battle Intensifies: Alibaba Challenges Meituan’s Hegemony
Taobao Flash Sale’s entry turns the in-store group buying market from “duopoly” to “three-way battle.” On one side, Meituan has 90% market share and 40% profit margin; on the other, Douyin seized a third of the market in three years with content. Alibaba uses a “content + transaction” strategy to differentiate.
Meituan reacted quickly: on September 16, it announced top star Xiao Zhan as group buying spokesperson—rare heavy investment seen as defensive. Meituan’s strengths are user mindset and ecosystem completeness. For example, a Shanghai Quanzhou-style restaurant has 1,273 reviews on Meituan vs. 33 from Amap on Taobao Flash Sale; Meituan also links group buying with delivery via “group buy first, then order,” while Taobao Flash Sale only offers basic redemption. Meituan’s ecosystem covers beauty, leisure, and even Miniso travel sets, while Taobao Flash Sale still focuses on food.
Douyin’s model differs: it uses short videos/livestreams to stimulate coupon囤货, but redemption rates are lower than Meituan. Taobao Flash Sale’s edge is transaction closed-loop and ecosystem synergy: users see Amap’s street recommendations, buy coupons on Taobao, and redeem via Alipay—all within Alibaba’s ecosystem. Amap’s street list uses 1.3 billion navigation data for “real consumption recommendations,” differing from Meituan’s UGC reviews.
Alibaba’s two in-store lines—Amap’s street list and Taobao Flash Sale’s group buying—remain independent. Amap allows merchant入驻 via “Amap Wangpu” or “Local Merchant Pass,” charging from late October. This “dual track” sparks speculation: internal competition or future integration? A Beijing handicraft store owner questioned: “Users may have bought coupons elsewhere when navigating with Amap.” Converting navigation traffic to transactions is a key challenge for Alibaba.
Protracted War Begins: Opportunities and Games for FMCG Brands
For FMCG, Taobao Flash Sale’s entry is both an increment opportunity and a new game. With weak catering recovery, multi-platform operation is common, but balancing traffic costs and profits tests businesses.
Price wars dominate now: some tea brands offer 3-5 yuan lower two-person meals on Taobao Flash Sale than Meituan to attract users. But long-term price wars are unsustainable. A restaurant owner operating on Meituan, Douyin, and Taobao said: “We adjust set menus flexibly—e.g., low-priced sets with high-priced drinks—to maintain profits.” Top brands like Starbucks and McDonald’s are still integrating systems, planning to launch post-National Day to observe market response.
User mindset is more critical. Meituan spent a decade building “group buying first on Meituan,” Douyin broke through with content, and Taobao Flash Sale needs differentiation. Current strategy focuses on “planned consumption” (e.g., family weekend meals), matching Taobao’s user profile. Senior researcher Weng Yi from the Digital Economy Think Tank said the National Day Golden Week is key: “Cross-regional consumption during travel may be Taobao Flash Sale’s breakthrough.”
Merchants are waking up to private domain operation. Many guide in-store users to private domains: a Beijing handicraft store has membership posters at the door: “Platform traffic is public—only private domain can ensure long-term operation.” This trend suggests future competition will shift from traffic争夺 to “public domain引流 + private domain operation.”
Taobao Flash Sale’s in-store group buying is an inevitable extension of Alibaba’s local life strategy and industry development. Short-term: subsidies and traffic synergy will drive market penetration. Long-term: success depends on building differentiated advantages and changing user habits. As a Taobao Flash Sale project member said: “We have no share targets—we focus on real user and merchant needs.”
This local life protracted war has no shortcuts. Meituan’s ecosystem, Douyin’s content, and Alibaba’s synergy will collide in the coming years. For FMCG brands, this is a transformative period of opportunities and challenges.
Final Thoughts
Taobao Flash Sale’s entry into in-store group buying is a key step in Alibaba’s local life strategy, making the industry a three-way battle. Its 58-day launch benefits from user/merchant demand and resource reuse, but it still has weaknesses like limited product supply and hidden traffic entries.
Currently, local life is shifting from traffic争夺 to value creation. The 2025 O2O market will exceed 3.8 trillion yuan, and consumption stratification creates differentiated opportunities. The National Day Golden Week is a key test—Taobao Flash Sale hopes to break through with cross-regional consumption, while Meituan and Douyin also have moves.
For merchants, this is a transformative period of opportunities and challenges.
Future competition will be a comprehensive battle of ecosystem synergy, scenario deepening, and private domain operation. Who solves user/merchant pain points and builds differentiated advantages will stand firm in the local life下半场. This protracted war has just begun.