India–U.S. Interim Trade Pact Cuts Auto Tariffs but Leaves Tesla Out 
Russian Stocks End Mixed as MOEX Index Closes Flat Amid Commodity Strength 
Japan Economy Poised for Q4 2025 Growth as Investment and Consumption Hold Firm 
Trump’s Inflation Claims Clash With Voters’ Cost-of-Living Reality 
Prudential Financial Reports Higher Q4 Profit on Strong Underwriting and Investment Gains 
Dollar Steadies Ahead of ECB and BoE Decisions as Markets Turn Risk-Off 
Gold Prices Slide Below $5,000 as Strong Dollar and Central Bank Outlook Weigh on Metals 
Trump Lifts 25% Tariff on Indian Goods in Strategic U.S.–India Trade and Energy Deal 
Nasdaq Proposes Fast-Track Rule to Accelerate Index Inclusion for Major New Listings 
U.S. Stock Futures Slide as Tech Rout Deepens on Amazon Capex Shock 
Japanese Pharmaceutical Stocks Slide as TrumpRx.gov Launch Sparks Market Concerns 
Once Upon a Farm Raises Nearly $198 Million in IPO, Valued at Over $724 Million 
Bank of Japan Signals Readiness for Near-Term Rate Hike as Inflation Nears Target 
OpenAI Expands Enterprise AI Strategy With Major Hiring Push Ahead of New Business Offering 
Vietnam’s Trade Surplus With US Jumps as Exports Surge and China Imports Hit Record 
Gold and Silver Prices Rebound After Volatile Week Triggered by Fed Nomination 
TSMC Eyes 3nm Chip Production in Japan with $17 Billion Kumamoto Investment 
Tim Hortons has teamed up with Alibaba to sell its bottled coffee drinks in China. The Canadian coffeehouse and restaurant chain will be using the Chinese e-commerce company’s Freshippo stores to sell bottled coffee to the locals.
Tim Hortons revealed its new 2-year partnership deal with Alibaba Group’s grocery chain late last week. As part of the agreement, they will also be launching co-branded products.
According to Reuters, starting next month, Alibaba's Freshippo will be selling Tim Hortons bottled coffees in its more than 300 stores across the nation. Customers can also find the products through the grocery store’s app. It was mentioned that premium beverages such as Velvet Cocoa Coffee would be available to the locals.
Tims China, the Chiese unit of the coffee chain brand, is also backed by the tech giant, Tencent Holdings. It just inaugurated its 500th store in the country’s Dongguan city, located in southern Guangdong province, last month, but more is yet to come as the company’s goal is to create a "profitable network" and have around 2,750 stores in China by the year 2026.
While this is Tim Horton’s plan, it was noted that it still needs to catch up with Starbucks, which is currently dominating the market in the foreign coffee brand category. The American coffeehouse company is already operating about 6,000 outlets in China. It has deals with Alibaba as well to bolster its product distribution.
South China Morning Post reported that the first Tim Hortons products to be sold at Alibaba’s 300 Freshippo stores and app are the chestnut latte and velvet cocoa coffee. Moreover, aside from the sale of beverages, the two companies will also jointly work on research and development of co-branded products.
They will cooperate on product design, positioning, pricing, and promotion of their newly developed items. Tims China’s chief executive officer, Yongchen Lu, said that this agreement is very beneficial to Tim Hortons as it will now have multiple channels to release its products in China. The coffee chain’s reach will surely go farther through Freshippo, which already has millions of customers.
Photo by: Erik Mclean/Unsplash
