Seven Fun to serve as a “third place” for working professionals
Chinese e-commerce company JD.com has launched its Seven Fun lifestyle spaces in Beijing. The new concept combines dining, drinking and social. Offering breakfast from sunrise, drinks into the late night and lunch, afternoon tea, snacks and even daily groceries in between, Seven Fun is aimed at catering to the needs of busy professionals, serving as a third place, after home and the office.
Located in Galaxy Soho on the second ring road of Beijing, Seven Fun is designed to cater to working professionals aged between 26-45 in first tier cities, providing not just a space but a lifestyle.
As global consumers are shifting from simply going to the store to purchase products, to now going to the store to experience products and buy services, delivering experiences has been essential for retailers to attract and retain consumers. With an area of around 1,000 square metres, Seven Fun offers more than 3,500 different products such as fresh food, baked goods, fresh flowers and groceries. It also features 12 selected eateries selling international delicacies, including three bars offering wine, Japanese sake and craft beer.
In addition to providing mealtime solutions to the approximately 200,000 working professionals within a 1km radius of the space, Seven Fun also serves as a gathering place that offers band performances, themed parties, and can be rented out to serve as a socialising or networking space for personal and corporate events.
Jonathan Wong, head of 7Fresh, JD.com, said: “As a lifestyle retailer, Seven Fun is innovating the retail landscape in China. Through this concept, JD.com provides a ‘SOLOMOME’ (social, local, mobile and personalised) offline experience that serves as a pioneering model for future brick-and-mortar stores.”
As a brand under JD’s 7Fresh, Seven Fun offers an omni-channel solution. Consumer can order the products in the store from the 7Fresh app to be delivered to their doorstep. Future expansion of Seven Fun is expected to focus on tier-one cities, targeting working professionals with annual income of over RMB 100,000. It also adopts a partner model that encourages the team at Seven Fun to become store partners.
