BEIJING - Lashou.com, China's biggest group-buying website by market value, said it received $111 million in a new round of funding and is planning to expand in the Southeast Asia market in the second half of this year.
北京——拉手网站，中国市场价值最大的团购网站，据称收到1.11亿美元的新一轮资金，以扩张东南亚市场在今年下半年。
London-based Milestone Capital Partners LLP and two funds under the Swiss company Richemont SA led the latest financing, according to a statement issued by Lashou on Monday. The investment follows two rounds of funding last year, which collected $5 million and $50 million, respectively.
位于伦敦的麦顿投资伙伴有限公司及瑞士历峰集团最新投资的两个基金。根据拉手周一时发布的声明。去年有两轮投资分别为5百元美元及5千万美元。
The funds will be used for upgrading call centers, city logistics, and the setting up of Lashou outlets in more than 30 cities, according to the company.
据公司称，资金将用于升级拉手的服务中心，城市物流，及在超过30个城市设立拉手销售点。
"At present, Lashou.com wants to cooperate with investors who may have a retail background, because their resources can help us better serve our clients," said Wu Bo, the website's founder and chief executive officer.
网站创建者兼总裁吴说，目前，拉手网站想与有零售背景的投资商合作，因为其资源可以帮助我们更好的服务于我们的顾客。
The Geneva-based Richemont owns several of the world's leading companies in the field of jewelry, luxury watches and premium accessories, such as the jewelry brand Cartier and Jaeger-LeCoultre watches.
位于日内瓦的历峰集团拥有几个世界上最大的珠宝，奢侈手表及配件领域的公司，例如卡蒂亚珠宝，积家手表等。
Wu said many Chinese people dream of purchasing luxury goods at a cheaper price. Demand can create a big market if a group-buying website launches products with luxury brands. This may help Lashou.com to achieve its target of building up an "online outlet" in China, Wu added.
吴说，很多中国人梦想着以便宜的价格购买奢侈品。如果团购网站开始奢侈品牌的产品，其需求可以创造巨大的市场。这有助于实现拉手的目标，即在中国建立一个在线的网络商品。
Founded in March 2010, Lashou has quickly grown into China's biggest group-purchasing website with an estimated market value of $1.1 billion. Wu said the company has no plans for an initial pubic offering and will not make a profit at least for the next two years.
2010年3月创建的拉手已经迅速成长为中国最大的团购网站，其评估市场价格为11亿。吴说公司在未来两年内不计划盈利。
Laoshou currently provides services in 500 Chinese cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Taipei. The company aims to expand in Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore in the second half of this year, according to Wu.
目前拉手为中国500个城市提供服务，包括北京，上海，香港及台北。公司目标扩张到东南亚国家像马来西亚，新加坡在今年下年年。
"I always said to myself, if Lashou can achieve a success in China, it can succeed in overseas markets too," he said. Wu's reasoning is simple: He believes that anyone who can survive the fierce competition in China is destined to survive in other countries.
我总是对自己说，如果拉手可以在中国获得成功，其也可以在海外市场获得成功。吴的推理很简单，他相信任何一个在中国激烈竞争中生存下来的人，也一定会在其它国家生存。
According to a February report issued by London-based research firm Frost & Sullivan, there were 1,880 group-buying websites in China by the end of last year, with total transaction revenue of 8.86 billion yuan ($1.36 billion).
根据二月时位于伦敦的调查公司弗若斯特沙利文公司发布的报告，至去年年底中国有1880家团购网站。总交易金额达到了88.6亿元。
Among them, Lashou, Meituan.com and Nuomi.com topped the list as the most-visited group-buying websites in China. Industry analysts estimate more than 90 percent of Chinese group-buying websites barely make enough money to ensure survival.
这其中，拉手，美团，诺米网站居前，成为最受欢迎的团购网站。行业分析家估算，超过90%的中国团购网站赚得的入仅仅可以生存。
Lashou has 4,000 employees and the figure will climb to more than 10,000 by the end of this year.
拉手有4000个员工，其数字今年年底将超过10000.
Wu said his website is not in a hurry to earn a profit, but the biggest task now is to provide better services, which will lead "the company to expand and grow quickly".
吴称，他的网站不急于赚钱，其最大的任务是提供更好的服务，这将致使公司迅速扩张及 成长。
Lashou hopes to become an enterprise like Haidilao - a Chinese hotpot brand, which is famous for its hospitality. "If your service is beyond customers' expectations, making money is out of question," Wu said.
拉手希望成为像一个中国火锅品牌海底捞，以其好客而闻名。如果你的服务超出了顾客的预期，赚钱就不是问题。
China Daily
(China Daily 04/12/2011 page13
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