J. Evans

President & Director, Alibaba

Search every verified J. Evans interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. J. Michael Evans, President of Alibaba Group, has discussed the company's international strategy and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on e-commerce and supply chains. In a 2023 interview with BloombergHT, Evans stated that Alibaba's initial decision to invest in Turkey was based on the country's geographic location, its manufacturing base, and the availability of a management team. He said that the company observed good coordination between the Turkish cabinet and ministries. Evans also commented on competition and regulation, stating that "competition is a good thing" and that regulatory frameworks should aim to give everyone an equal opportunity to participate. He noted that the impact of COVID-19 and the post-COVID period on supply chains has been important, and that disruptions have contributed to high inflation in many parts of the world. In earlier appearances, Evans discussed Alibaba's partnership with Farfetch and Richemont, describing it as a way to bring technology and creative solutions for retail to multiple markets. He said that the deal was about using technology and finding partners to create an experience for merchants and consumers that cannot be created by a single entity. Evans also spoke about the digitization of retail, stating that the concept of "new retail" — the digitization of the full retail value chain — is very important. He noted that Alibaba had passed two trillion US dollars in sales, with 90 percent of those sales happening on a mobile phone, and that the company had about 846 million highly engaged customers. Evans described Alibaba's strategy as connecting businesses in the developed world with consumers in emerging markets, and he expressed confidence that China had returned to pre-COVID levels of consumption and consumer confidence.