Livestreaming the big winner in China’s mid-year shopping festival
Event tie-ins
E-commerce & mobile retail
Livestreaming
While the GMV of major e-commerce and livestreaming platforms during China’s recent 618 shopping festival was down 7% to RMB 742.8bn ($102bn), livestreaming proved a bright spot as GMV increased 12% year on year, according to data provider Syntun.
It added, however, that “despite the rapid development of livestreaming e-commerce, the overall scale and level of service is still no match for traditional e-commerce”. (Separate research, meanwhile, points to sharp drops in sales by some high-profile figures like beauty influencers Li Jiaqi and Luo Wangyu.)
How different platforms fared
- Traditional e-commerce platforms (the three largest being Tmall, JD.com and Pinduoduo): RMB 571.7bn.
- Livestreaming e-commerce platforms (the three largest being TikTok, Kuai Shou and Dian Tao): RMB 206.8bn.
- RMB 24.9bn: new retail e-commerce platforms (the three largest being Mei Tuan Shan Gou, JD Miao Song and Ele.me).
- RMB 13.9bn: community group buying e-commerce platforms (the three largest being Duo Duo Mai Cai, Mei Tuan You Xuan, Xing Shen You Xuan).
Why 618 figures matter
Observers regard the sales figures of such events as being indicative of consumer sentiment, which is currently at a low ebb in China. This year was the first time that GMV has fallen since the 618 shopping event was launched in 2010.
An alternative reading, however, is that consumers are no longer so excited by shopping festivals. “Consumers have become numb to promotions because they are so frequent,” Li Chengdong, an analyst at think-tank Haitun, told the Financial Times. “With promotions becoming the norm, there’s no need to wait for a sale to shop,” he said.
Sourced from Syntun, Financial Times