Lazada, Alibaba's Southeast Asian arm, appointed James Dong as chief executive officer on Friday (Jun 3) as the Chinese e-commerce giant seeks to expand abroad in the face of tight competition at home.
Dong joined Lazada in 2018 to lead its Thailand and Vietnam businesses. He was previously the head of globalisation strategy and corporate development at Alibaba.
In April, Reuters reported that Alibaba plans to expand Lazada to Europe and Dong would help spearhead the initiative.
He succeeds Chun Li, who took over the role in 2020.
Li will continue to serve as advisor to Lazada Group Chairman Jiang Fan and stay on the company's board, according to a company statement.
As CEO for Lazada Vietnam, Dong oversaw a push to bolster logistics and improve operations to cope with rising orders at the height of the pandemic, Bloomberg reported.
“Since James joined Lazada in 2018, he has quickly delivered success in his various roles,” it quoted the company as saying in a statement.
Dong, who has an MBA from Cambridge University, was formerly an associate partner at consulting firm McKinsey & Co, according to Lazada's website.
He also served as business assistant to Alibaba group CEO Daniel Zhang before joining Lazada as CEO for Thailand.
Dong joined Lazada in 2018 to lead its Thailand and Vietnam businesses. He was previously the head of globalisation strategy and corporate development at Alibaba.
In April, Reuters reported that Alibaba plans to expand Lazada to Europe and Dong would help spearhead the initiative.
He succeeds Chun Li, who took over the role in 2020.
Li will continue to serve as advisor to Lazada Group Chairman Jiang Fan and stay on the company's board, according to a company statement.
As CEO for Lazada Vietnam, Dong oversaw a push to bolster logistics and improve operations to cope with rising orders at the height of the pandemic, Bloomberg reported.
“Since James joined Lazada in 2018, he has quickly delivered success in his various roles,” it quoted the company as saying in a statement.
Dong, who has an MBA from Cambridge University, was formerly an associate partner at consulting firm McKinsey & Co, according to Lazada's website.
He also served as business assistant to Alibaba group CEO Daniel Zhang before joining Lazada as CEO for Thailand.
