Alibaba has revealed that sales from its ‘618’ mid-year shopping festival are off to a strong start.
The e-commerce company surpassed the total gross merchandise volume (GMV) generated in the first 10 hours of last year’s sale in the first 60 minutes of this year’s sale. And it surpassed last year’s total first-day GMV in less than 12 hours.
Among the more than 200,000 brands and retailers that are participating in this year’s festival, Chemist Warehouse has emerged as a top seller.
The Aussie retailer was the number one seller on Tmall Global (an Alibaba platform for international brands) on the first day of the festival, and its sales continue to track 50 per cent higher than last year’s campaign.
“The 618 Shopping Festival is a useful opportunity for Chemist Warehouse to engage China’s shoppers with campaigns and promotions,” said Nancy Jian, CEO of Chemist Warehouse’s China division.
The festival, which takes place from June 1-18, aims to engage customers in emerging cities, counties and villages across China.
“In addition to rising discretionary spending, consumers in China’s less-developed regions are becoming more-sophisticated shoppers who are looking for lifestyle upgrades,” Jiang Fan, president of Taobao and Tmall, said.
“This increased consumption potential could mean bright prospects for our merchants. People in these areas might have less access to physical shopping facilities to those in big cities, and this year we are working closely with our partners to address their needs and offer them the same good quality products on our platforms.”
The concept for a ‘618’ sale was first launched by Alibaba’s rival, JD.com, to celebrate its founding on June 18.
