As the “instant” or “real-time” e-commerce competition heats up in China, Meituan has opened a new front, this time in Saudi Arabia. On 21 May, it was reported that Meituan opened its overseas version of Xiaoxiang supermarket, called Keemart, in Riyadh, the capital city of Saudi Arabia.
Following its Keeta food delivery service in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, Keemart will become Meituan’s first retail venture outside China. While Meituan has yet to confirm the expansion, Keemart is already actively recruiting managerial roles in procurement, business development and operations. Candidates need to be long-term Riyadh residents and fluent in English.
Meanwhile, an app called Keemart Courier has already been online for more than a month. You can register with your email address or using a Saudi phone number. This also proves that Keemart is preparing its logistics system in the city.
Keeta is already the number 1 downloaded takeaway app in Saudi Arabia with 13,000 restaurant partners and over 15,000 registered riders. However, Meituan CEO Wang Xing explained at the Q4 2024 results conference that Keeta is only one small step, and the giant leap is actually Xiaoxiang (Keemart abroad) and Keeta Drone, which received a commercial license in Dubai last December. Wang Xing also notes that Meituan’s “going abroad” (出海) strategy would not be as rapid as in China, since the company would need to focus on building its infrastructure first.