Sun Weimin, Suning's vice-chairman, said the growth of Laox has contributed strongly to the parent company's overall performance, and will continue to feature strongly in helping the Nanjing-based retailer expand further globally.

In 2013, the company opened its first overseas research and development center in California's Silicon Valley to focus on developing its offline-to-online business model, and bolster its back-office capabilities.

Sun said along with Suning's operations in Hong Kong, its Laox investment has been particularly supportive in shaping its globalization effort in terms of capital, human resources and management know-how.