HANGZHOU, China, June 22, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- China Jo-Jo Drugstores, Inc. (NASDAQ CM: CJJD)
(the "Company" or "China Jo-Jo"), a
leading China-based retail and wholesale distributor that offers
pharmaceutical and health care products through its online and
retail pharmacies, announced today that Hangzhou Jiuzhou Grand
Pharmacy Chain Co., Ltd ("Jiuzhou Pharmacy"), one of its
subsidiaries in China has become
the first Hangzhou based pharmacy
to launch stores on Tencent's WeChat platform, China's dominant
mobile messaging app and social network with over 500 million
active users. This move is another endeavor, after the Company's
previously announced partnership with Alipay and
Ali-Health, for China Jo-Jo
to build its own Online-to-Offline (O2O) ecosystem for its
pharmaceutical and healthcare products.
In late 2014, Tencent Holding Ltd.
(HKSE: 0700) unveiled its on-line merchant stores for small to
medium size businesses based on its popular WeChat platform
("WeChat Merchant Store", or "WMS"), and it has quickly developed
into an all-in-one mobile marketing service. WMS allows merchants
the opportunities to engage with their customers in real-time and
gather data based on consumer profiles and spending behaviors.
Merchants can also utilize WMS to update product information and
manage inventory and merchandising process. On the other hand, WMS
allows customers to pay by WeChat Pay, a convenient payment method
similar to Alipay. As a well-known payment method that customers
already trust, WeChat Pay can greatly increase online transaction
flow for WeChat Merchants. By opening our pharmacy on WMS platform,
China Jo-Jo hopes to attract a much
larger and loyal client base by implementing better data mining,
target marketing and sales promotions such as group-buy, gift
certificates, flash sale, coupons and loyalty program. By
integrating our in-store IT system with WMS's powerful payment, O2O
and service backbone platform, we intend to transform our brick and
mortar stores into "Intelligent Pharmacies".
China Jo-Jo President, Li Qi,
expressed her excitement regarding the potential of WMS platform in
a recent statement, "In a traditional drugstore, there is only
one-way interaction between the store and its customers. Now in our
O2O drugstores, we and our customers can easily communicate with
each other through WeChat platform anytime and anywhere. Clients
can now enjoy customized service and received more targeted
benefits such as coupons and member discounts. For us, we can now
build, track and analyze numerous data on customer spending
pattern, which will be used to improve the on-line purchasing
experience as a whole. O2O business solutions will remain an
integral part of China Jo-Jo's
strategy in the future."
About China Jo-Jo Drugstores,
Inc.
China Jo-Jo Drugstores, Inc.,
through its own retail drugstores, wholesale distributor and online
pharmacy, is a leading retailer and wholesale distributor of
pharmaceutical and healthcare products in China. As of March 31,
2015, the Company had 59 retail pharmacies in Hangzhou. The Company's wholesale subsidiary
not only supplies its retail stores, but also distributes drug and
other healthcare products to other drugstores and drug vendors. The
Company routinely posts important information on its corporate
websites at www.jiuzhou-drugstore.com (Chinese) and
www.chinajojodrugstores.com (English).
Forward Looking Statement
Statements in this press release regarding the Company that are
not historical facts are forward-looking statements and are subject
to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual future events or
results to differ materially from such statements. Any such
forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to,
financial guidance, are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions
of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These
statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking
terminology such as "believe," "expect," "estimate," "may," "will,"
"should," "project," "plan," "seek," "intend," "anticipate," the
negatives thereof, or comparable terminology. Such statements
typically involve risks and uncertainties and may include financial
projections or information regarding the progress of new product
development. It is routine for the Company's internal projections
and expectations to change as the quarter and year progresses, and
therefore it should be clearly understood that the internal
projections and beliefs upon which the Company bases its
expectations may change. Although these expectations may change,
the Company is under no obligation to inform you if they do. Actual
results could differ materially from the expectations reflected in
such forward-looking statements as a result of numerous factors,
including the risks associated with the effect of changing economic
conditions in the People's Republic of
China, variations in cash flow, reliance on collaborative
retail partners and on new product development, variations in new
product development, risks associated with rapid technological
change, and the potential of introduced or undetected flaws and
defects in products. Readers are referred to the reports and
documents filed from time to time by the Company with the
Securities and Exchange Commission for a discussion of these and
other important risk factors that could cause actual results to
differ from those discussed in forward-looking statements. Other
than as required under the securities laws, the Company does not
assume a duty to update these forward-looking statements.
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SOURCE China Jo-Jo Drugstores,
Inc.