November 11 is an important date for Alibaba, the Chinese e-commerce giant. In 2019, the 11th edition of Alibaba’s Global Shopping Festival broke records with an astonishing 268.4 billion yuan in sales, equivalent to 34.7 billion euros. This surpassed the previous year’s results by 26%. What’s even more impressive is that the first billion dollars in sales was reached within a mere 68 seconds after the event started.
Participating in this online festival were 200,000 brands, with notable success from Apple, Adidas, Nike, L’Oréal, and Uniqlo, as confirmed by Alibaba. In addition, 299 brands saw sales exceeding 100 million yuan during the event, including luxury brands Estée Lauder and Giorgio Armani.
The 2019 edition of the festival showcased a massive launch of new products, with a million new items available across all Alibaba platforms. For instance, within the first five minutes of pre-sales, cosmetics brand MAC sold 60,000 limited edition lipsticks.
Alibaba credits its success to its ability to penetrate Chinese cities outside of major metropolitan areas, tapping into an emerging middle-class with increased purchasing power. In the 2019 fiscal year, over 70% of the 102 million new consumers on the platform were located in lower-tier cities. This presents a lucrative opportunity as it is predicted that by 2025, 50% of Chinese consumers will make their luxury purchases domestically.
Liu Bo, General Marketing Manager of Taobao and TMall, notes, “These underdeveloped Chinese markets have a strong growth potential due to their population, geographic location, and shopping habits.” Fan Jiang, President of Taobao and TMall, adds, “Today, we have shown the world what the future of consumption can be for brands and consumers. We are encountering increasing demand from Chinese consumers and we are accompanying them in improving their lifestyle while introducing new users to our digital economy, both in China and around the world.”
Link to Alibaba’s Global Shopping Festival 2019 results: Alibaba Group Press Release
Link to more information on Alibaba’s e-commerce platforms: Alizila
