One of Alibaba’s top executives, who led the effort to sign up international brands to its Chinese marketplaces, has left the company.
John Spelich, reached on the phone by GeekWire, confirmed that he left the company for personal reasons. “I spent six and a half years on the road. It was time to come home,” he said. “It was exciting and a great company, but you get burned out after awhile.”
For now, he is living in Seattle, where he will be evaluating his next move. In the meantime, he’s also consulting through his marketing and communications company, Logan Spelich Associates, which he owns with his wife, Lacey Logan.
During his time at Alibaba, Spelich had one of the more outward-facing roles in the U.S. While VP of e-commerce business development, Spelich wrote an editorial for Quartz a year ago about how post offices around the world have a chance to stay relevant by becoming an essential piece of the global e-commerce supply chain, and in late September, he was one of the company’s main representatives at the National Retail Federation’s Shop.org’s annual conference.
At the time of his departure, he was charged with signing up retailers to the company’s various retail portals. In particular, he worked on the Tmall Global platform, which makes it easy for U.S. brands can sell merchandise in China. Prior to his business development role, he served as VP of international affairs for more than five years.
An Alibaba spokesperson confirmed Spelich’s departure. “John Spelich left Alibaba Group in late 2014 after six years of invaluable service and contribution,” she said. She declined to add if Alibaba had replaced him.
In September, Alibaba’s initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange raised $25 billion, a record-setting IPO.
Before joining Alibaba, Spelich held several high-ranking roles at various companies. He headed up communications for multiple divisions at the Walt Disney Company, and served in similar roles at Gateway computers and Ford Motor Company.
When asked if he plans to stay in Seattle, Spelich said he wasn’t sure: “I don’t know yet; I’m just getting acclimated to what it’s like here.”
