Suning.com, the retail unit of Suning Holdings Group Ltd, announced on Feb 12 that it will acquire a total of 37 department stores of Wanda Department Store Co Ltd, to enhance its online-and-offline retail businesses.

Considered a key move for Suning to map its retail layout in the country, the acquisition is expected to quickly improve Suning's offline, or brick-and-mortar, resources and strengthen its merchandise supply chain to increase profits of its retail businesses, according to Suning's statement.

The 37 Wanda Department Store locations, which have a total of more than 4 million registered customers, are mainly situated in central business areas in first- and second-tier cities.

The statement said the revenue of Wanda Department Store has seen a steady rise, with a continuous growth in net profits.

The new business unit will add department stores to Suning's retail empire, which has been focusing mainly on home appliances and has now expanded to fast-moving consumer goods as well as maternity and baby products.

Through the deal, Suning.com is also hoping to bring its digital strengths in areas such as big data and artificial intelligence to Wanda, in an effort to further update the digital transformation of traditional department stores and enhance shoppers' experiences.