Chinese ecommerce giant Alibaba has appointed bosses to run its operations in Germany and France as it continues to eye expansion in Europe.
Terry von Bibra, formerly chief retail officer of omnichannel at department store chain Karstadt, has joined the retailer in the newly-created role of managing director of Alibaba Group Germany.
Sébastien Badault, formerly a global account director at Google, has taken the role of managing director of Alibaba Group France.
The appointments come just weeks after Alibaba recruited its first UK boss, former Tesco executive Amee Chande. The etailer also plans to expand its UK office from 15 people to 60 people within the next two years.
Alibaba is also searching for office space in Munich and Paris, fresh from establishing a base in Milan and a managing director to run its Italian operations.
Alibaba Group president Michael Evans said: “In Europe, our top priority is to engage with existing local partners and help European brands, retailers, small businesses and government partners understand the opportunities China offers and how Alibaba can help them access this market.
”We have hired strong leaders in Germany, France, Italy and the UK to connect the needs of local brands and merchants with the capabilities of our ecosystem.”
He added: “Both Terry and Sébastien have proven track records in successfully building teams and business capabilities for major international companies and we are thrilled to have them on board.”
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