Alibaba's defining moves.
The defining strategic moves at Alibaba — each one explained and grounded in the record.
The Money Machine · Business Model
Alibaba's Flywheel Still Spins. The Question Is How Hard the Wind Now Blows Against It.
Alibaba's marketplace flywheel is taught as a self-reinforcing monopoly. But PDD passed it in active buyers by 2021, its share of China online retail fell from ~72% to ~62% in a single year, and the take rate it spins on is compressing.
8 min
The Money Machine · Business Model
Alibaba's Real Money Machine Is an Ad Network Wearing a Mall Costume
Everyone calls Alibaba 'the Amazon of China,' but its profit engine isn't selling goods - it's charging merchants to be found. On RMB 941B of FY2024 revenue, the structural moat is search fees, not inventory. Except the 'zero inventory' story is a myth: RMB 110B of direct sales says otherwise.
8 min
The Flywheel · Flywheel
Alibaba's Flywheel Spun on Coercion. Then the Regulators Drained It.
Alibaba's loop of merchants, shoppers, data, and cloud looks self-sustaining. But a core gear was a 'choose one of two' exclusivity scheme that drew an ¥18.2 billion fine in 2021 - and didn't stop Pinduoduo from overtaking it that same March.
8 min