What Alibaba's Success Means for U.S. Retailers

Who would've thunk it.

A company that sells barf bibs, Buddha-shaped pears, a portable fat-freezing machine and inflatable walking-on-water shoes that was started by a poor Chinese schoolteacher who first used the internet while visiting the U.S. in 1995 and is nicknamed "Crazy Jack" by reporters had an initial public offering last week that now ranks as the world's biggest at $25 billion.