What: Printemps hopes to lure in Asian customers thanks to Alipay and Kakao payment options.

Why it is important: Being able to welcome customers from the whole world will  increasingly force department stores to host a number of different payment solutions as the world is fragmenting on this topic.

France-based luxury department store Printemps has integrated Alipay+ to offer its Asian customers a seamless checkout experience. Alipay+, developed by Ant Group, provides global mobile payment and marketing solutions that connect merchants with multiple e-wallets and payment methods.

As a result, Printemps now accepts payment apps popular in Asia like AlipayHK and Kakao Pay, offering real-time in-app displays of payments in euros and the user's home currency. This collaboration is part of a broader marketing strategy, which includes special offers and shopping experiences through customers' payment apps.

This move is expected to boost Printemps's appeal to Asian tourists, particularly from China, as France is one of the top global destinations for them. Printemps first partnered with Ant Group in 2015, adding Alipay to its accepted payment options and introducing instant tax refund services for Alipay users.

Printemps Paris now offers Alipay + as a payment method