Suning Holdings Group boss Zhang Jindong has vowed that 2018 will be ‘a fundamental year’ for the expansion of the company’s sporting industry.
The Chinese group have been majority shareholders at Inter since they purchased a 68.55% stake in the club back in June 2016, but have frequently been criticised by supporters for a perceived lack of investments and a limited involvement in the Nerazzurri’s day-to-day life.
However company boss Zhang assured on Sunday that Suning remain strongly interested in the world of football and are considering entering into other sports in the near future.
“This year will be crucial for our sporting industry,” he said in an interview with Chinese TV. “During 2017 we reached 3.7 billion users for our services on PPTV [a Chinese video streaming website which Suning acquired in 2015]; now we need to find new commercial resources as quickly as possible.
“For Suning sport is an excellent vehicle through which to attract interest. If any important opportunities for our business should arise then Suning will certainly take them.
“Our focus for the moment is on football, but we want to branch out into other sports in the future. Sport contains a lot of positive values: energy, enthusiasm, loyalty and hard work. All of this is strongly linked to the social image that we would like to create for our brand.”