Beckham bends it for AliExpress

AliExpress, the e-commerce site owned by Chinese giant Alibaba, has hired former England captain David Beckham as a brand ambassador as it catches up with rival PDD Holdings Temu in its battle to sell cheap Chinese-made goods to the world.

Alibaba, previously a small cross-border player, is now investing aggressively to boost global sales amid flagging domestic e-commerce growth. Its international division, which includes AliExpress, is its fastest-growing unit, with revenue growing 45 percent year-on-year from January to March. This year, AliExpress became a sponsor of the UEFA Euro 2024 tournament, which starts in June, during which it will invest millions of dollars in discounts, offers and engagement.

The advertising campaign featuring Beckham will run in conjunction with the UEFA tournament and will encourage people to “earn more points with AliExpress”.

This follows the success of PDD’s Temu ads during this year’s Super Bowl, which told US consumers to “shop like a billionaire.”