AAA Suning goes shopping in China

Suning goes shopping in China

China-headquartered retailer Suning has provided an undisclosed amount of funding for two local startups – panoramic camera producer Arashi Vision and higher education e-commerce company 8Day Online – China Money Network has reported.

Founded in 2014, Arashi Vision’s flagship product is Insta360, a camera for iPhones that enables users to produce high-quality video for livestreaming. Suning’s investment was made as part of an eight-figure RMB (RMB1 = $0.15) round, according to Marbridge Consulting.

The company closed a nine-figure RMB round in April this year led by cloud computing firm Shenzhen Xunlei Networking Technologies and backed by IDG Capital Partners, media company International Data Group’s local VC affiliate, Qiming Venture Partners and Frees Fund, according to China Money Network.

IDG Capital had supplied Arashi with $1m in seed capital in 2014 before combining with Qiming for an $8m series A round last year.

Launched in 2013 and also known as 8Dol, 8Day operates an on-demand e-commerce platform for campus services, covering food delivery and other items. Suning will assist it in offline organisation and supply chain services as it looks to expand to residential areas and offices.

Fosun Kinzon Capital, a subsidiary of conglomerate Fosun, and VC fund Shunwei Capital provided an eight-figure dollar amount for 8Day across series A and B rounds before cleaning and pet care product maker Longliqi led its $30.7m series C in March this year.

Soochow TianGong, an incubator formed by clothing producer Bosideng International and Soochow University, is also an investor in 8Day.

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