11.11, Singles' Day of 2015: news & updates

[cirr]

China’s Rural Shoppers Joined 11.11 Sale
Alibaba’s efforts to turn more of China’s rural residents into online shoppers appears to have paid off during the e-commerce giant’s 11.11 Global Shopping Festival as thousands of villagers joined the 24-hour sale for the first time. GMV generated at Alibaba’s over 8,000 village-level service centers across the country reached more than RMB 200 million ($31.4 million) with several hours left in the 24-hour sale, according to Alibaba.

To make sure rural residents, who are less affluent than their cousins in China’s large cities, got some love during the sale, Alibaba’s Rural Taobao shopping channel created a list of 34 products popular with rural shoppers for pre-sale promotions. Best-selling items large appliances and consumer electronics such as TVs are among the list.

And to make sure that buyers in more remote areas received goods in a timely manner, the website warehoused inventory in Alibaba Group county operation centers according to sales projections developed from geographic online shopping patterns. The data-enhanced planning paid off. Rural Taobao reported a shopper living in Zhuping Village in Chongqing ordered a TV for his new home right after the sale began at midnight and took deliver just an hour and 48 minutes later, marking the first order delivered to rural region during this year’s 11.11 sale.

Taobao village-level service centre in Zhuping Village, Western China
View attachment 271275

Alibaba is investing $1.6 billion over the next three to five years to build a network of thousands of service centers and distribution facilities in areas that lack adequate retail and logistics infrastructure. More than 8,000 are already operating, Alibaba says. Villagers can shop at these physical outlets, with the help of local operators called Rural Taobao partners. Coordinated by Alibaba’s logistics arm Cainiao, goods ordered online are delivered to county operation centers where they are distributed to local couriers for last-mile delivery.

For the 11.11 sale, manufacturers and merchants introduced cheaper products suited for rural consumers. TV maker Hisense, for example, offered a low-priced 39-inch model with less functionality than typical models demanded by urban residents. By engaging with villagers and encouraging them to join 11.11, “we hope they can enjoy the same happiness and convenience through e-commerce that city residents enjoy,” said Alibaba CEO Daniel Zhang at the event’s media center in Beijing’s Water Cube. Zhang also announced Alibaba plans to hold another 11.11-like shopping festival around Chinese New Year next year that would benefit more rural shoppers.

In addition to TVs, other top-selling products favored by rural buyers include high-pressure car washers and Buick Excelle car models, as well as daily necessities like Head & Shoulders shampoo, thermal underwear, and laundry detergent, according to Alibaba.


View attachment 271276




Seriously? Such a big country only $16 billion for the whole year?!
That's only slightly more than the number of Shanghai.
@Bussard Ramjet

There is so much yet-untapped potential！

I long for the day when I can order any variety of fresh veggies and fruits online and have them delivered within hours，much in the way I do with electronic devices now。

 

[AndrewJin]

There is so much yet-untapped potential！

I long for the day when I can order any variety of fresh veggies and fruits online and have them delivered within hours，much in the way I do with electronic devices now。

Already happening, organic fruit and veggie, imported beef and seafood.
网上超市1号店，省力省钱省时间

This fresh beef, same-day delivery in nearby city.
One day from Shanghai to Kunming

And farmers are directly selling their products online.
New-generation farmers!

 

[TaiShang]

Taiwan shoppers sold on consumer craze
| November 12, 2015, Thursday |

PRINT EDITION

Workers walk past boxes of goods for delivery at a courier firm in Shanghai. Logistics companies have been kept busy following Singles Day, the world’s biggest online shopping spree. — Xinhua

AN online shopping holiday that originated on China’s mainland has spread to Taiwan, with intense media coverage and websites launching major sales.

Leading e-shopping sites like Yahoo, Rakuten and GOMAJI, held “Singles Day” sales yesterday, emulating the binge on the Chinese mainland’s platforms.

Yahoo is offering discounts of up to 50 percent for the next 10 days, while Japan-based Rakuten featured more than 10,000 discounted items from about 400 vendors. Taiwan-based ET Mall promoted merchandise with discounts of up to 11 percent, and GOMAJI handed out coupons worth NT$8 million (US$244,000).

Posters for “Singles Day” sales were seen at subway stations in Taipei and on social media, including Twitter and Facebook.

“Singles Day” started in the 1990s as an excuse for the unattached to celebrate — or poke fun at — their status, but it has evolved into an online shopping spectacle for everyone.

Rakuten said in a press release yesterday that visits to its website increased by 50 percent from the previous day, and sales doubled for high-end electronics, such as smartphones and digital cameras.

As one of the earliest e-shopping sites to follow the mainland craze, Yahoo launched a similar campaign last year and reported total sales nearly four times the average.

Mainland e-commerce companies have wooed overseas consumers. Taobao.com launched a special platform for the day for shoppers in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia, promising fast and reliable delivery.

Taiwan customs even set up a special squad to cope with the increase in imported goods, the agency said late last month. Last year, its Taipei office received about 1.5 million applications for customs clearance of small imported goods.

However, some consumers were reluctant to buy from mainland websites. A survey conducted by the Market Intelligence & Consulting Institute, a Taipei think tank, showed that 37 percent of 313 respondents said they were interested but cautious about shopping on mainland websites.

Lu Mei-rong, a civil servant, said she will shop on local websites, but is hesitant to use mainland platforms.

“‘I’ve not shopped on Taobao before, and I worry about how to get the goods delivered to Taiwan,” she said.

The mainland and Taiwan signed the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement in 2010, which reduced tariffs on goods moving between the two sides.

 

[cirr]

What did China buy on Singles’ Day?

GBTIMES BEIJING - GBTIMES BEIJING

2015/11/12

Alibaba saw a 60% increase in sales from last year's event, with an estimated 120,000 orders each minute during the festival. (Photo: China News Service)

Chinese media have compiled a list of consumers' top purchases during the Singles’ Day event after the world’s biggest 24-hour online shopping spree concluded with record-breaking sales by Chinese e-retailers on Wednesday.

Clothes, cosmetics, baby products, electronic appliances, travel agency products, smartphones and even automobiles were among the most popular items on the shopping lists of millions of Chinese consumers, almost 70% of whom were reportedly female buyers.

More than 8,000 craftsmen participated in this year’s event, leading to substantial growth in orders from beauty services like manicures and hair dressing.

The United States, Japan, South Korea, Germany and Australia were the top overseas options for online shoppers, with beauty balms, thermometers and tampons the three most popular products.

BBC reports that with $14.3 billion worth of sales, Alibaba saw a 60% increase from last year's event, with an estimated 120,000 orders each minute during the festival.

Global Times notes that 100m yuan was spent in the first 18 seconds after midnight on November 11, and 24.77bn was spent in the first hour.

What did China buy on Singles’ Day? | gbtimes.com



Couple calls cops after running out of money while shopping online

GBTIMES

2015/11/12

Singles' Day is known as an online shopping bonanza. (Photo is illustrative) (Photo: China News Service)

A married couple called police after going on Singles' Day shopping spree and spending all of their money in Fuzhou, Fujian Province on November 11.

The pair got into a heated argument after joining the world's biggest online shopping event but running out of cash before they could buy everything they wanted, reported the Chinese language China News Service.

24-year-old Li and her husband Zhang splurged almost 20,000 yuan (USD 3,142) on various items.

They got into a fight after Li accused her husband of being selfish and only buying expensive gifts for himself and his parents. Zhang blamed her for spending money on "useless junk".

The quarrelling continued into the early hours. Zhang finally called police at 3 AM, saying they needed help to put the argument to bed.

"You bought just bunch of rubbish. There is hundreds of yuan worth of clothes in your shopping cart. When are you going to have time to wear all of them? Why did you buy so much food when we don’t even know how to cook?" Zhang ranted when the police arrived.

"You only bought electronics which are useless and not even that much cheaper!" his wife responded.

Police advised them to be reasonable when spending money and not hurt each other's feelings over such trivial matters as shopping. The couple eventually calmed down and made up.

Couple calls cops after running out of money while shopping online | gbtimes.com

 

[AndrewJin]

Farmers directly sell their products online.

What did China buy on Singles’ Day?

GBTIMES BEIJING - GBTIMES BEIJING

2015/11/12

Alibaba saw a 60% increase in sales from last year's event, with an estimated 120,000 orders each minute during the festival. (Photo: China News Service)

Chinese media have compiled a list of consumers' top purchases during the Singles’ Day event after the world’s biggest 24-hour online shopping spree concluded with record-breaking sales by Chinese e-retailers on Wednesday.

Clothes, cosmetics, baby products, electronic appliances, travel agency products, smartphones and even automobiles were among the most popular items on the shopping lists of millions of Chinese consumers, almost 70% of whom were reportedly female buyers.

More than 8,000 craftsmen participated in this year’s event, leading to substantial growth in orders from beauty services like manicures and hair dressing.

The United States, Japan, South Korea, Germany and Australia were the top overseas options for online shoppers, with beauty balms, thermometers and tampons the three most popular products.

BBC reports that with $14.3 billion worth of sales, Alibaba saw a 60% increase from last year's event, with an estimated 120,000 orders each minute during the festival.

Global Times notes that 100m yuan was spent in the first 18 seconds after midnight on November 11, and 24.77bn was spent in the first hour.

What did China buy on Singles’ Day? | gbtimes.com



Couple calls cops after running out of money while shopping online

GBTIMES

2015/11/12

Singles' Day is known as an online shopping bonanza. (Photo is illustrative) (Photo: China News Service)

A married couple called police after going on Singles' Day shopping spree and spending all of their money in Fuzhou, Fujian Province on November 11.

The pair got into a heated argument after joining the world's biggest online shopping event but running out of cash before they could buy everything they wanted, reported the Chinese language China News Service.

24-year-old Li and her husband Zhang splurged almost 20,000 yuan (USD 3,142) on various items.

They got into a fight after Li accused her husband of being selfish and only buying expensive gifts for himself and his parents. Zhang blamed her for spending money on "useless junk".

The quarrelling continued into the early hours. Zhang finally called police at 3 AM, saying they needed help to put the argument to bed.

"You bought just bunch of rubbish. There is hundreds of yuan worth of clothes in your shopping cart. When are you going to have time to wear all of them? Why did you buy so much food when we don’t even know how to cook?" Zhang ranted when the police arrived.

"You only bought electronics which are useless and not even that much cheaper!" his wife responded.

Police advised them to be reasonable when spending money and not hurt each other's feelings over such trivial matters as shopping. The couple eventually calmed down and made up.

Couple calls cops after running out of money while shopping online | gbtimes.com

What have you bought?

 

[Yizhi]

the day after 11.11, on the road.


now waiting for my 15 parcels, 2 already arrived.

 

[AndrewJin]

View attachment 271341
the day after 11.11, on the road.


now waiting for my 15 parcels, 2 already arrived.

WOW, so many delivery trucks from the same company.
Is it on expressway in Guangdong Province?

 

[Yizhi]

WOW, so many delivery trucks from the same company.
Is it on expressway in Guangdong Province?

yes all 粤S trucks from Dongguan. mostly electronics and clothing i think, Guangdong specialty.

 

[AndrewJin]

Records!
(from Tmall only)
640,000 kg apples
260,000 kg honey
10.12 million litre milk
6.56 million kg nuts
640,000 TVs
3.13 million mobile phones
1.11 million watches
6506 cars

@Yizhi @Shotgunner51 @TaiShang @Stranagor @cirr @Keel @Jlaw @Place Of Space @FairAndUnbiased @zeronet @Raphael @sweetgrape @Edison Chen @Chinese Bamboo @Chinese-Dragon @cnleio @+4vsgorillas-Apebane @onebyone @yusheng @Kyle Sun @dy1022 @Beast @YoucanYouup @terranMarine @ahojunk @kuge@Economic superpower @Beidou2020 @cirr @JSCh @jkroo @Pangu @ChineseTiger1986 @powastick @onebyone @kankan326 @badguy2000 @TianyaTaiwan @ahtan_china @ChineseTiger1986 @powastick @empirefighter @hexagonsnow @xuxu1457 @sword1947 @tranquilium@XiaoYaoZi @55100864 @Sommer @HongWu002 @Speeder 2 @Dungeness @utp45 @StarCraft_ZT2 @Martian2 @Jguo @Arryn @rott @TheTruth @Dungeness @immortalsoul @beijingwalker @xunzi @Obambam @ahtan_china @bolo @bobsm @Abacin @Tom99 @Genesis @GS Zhou @djsjs @Daniel808 @Nan Yang @70U63 @CAPRICORN-88 et al

Not enough?
Encore carnival
12 November - 18 November

天猫超市-双十一返场新-华中-上天猫，就够了

 

[Jlaw]

Couple calls cops after running out of money while shopping online

GBTIMES

2015/11/12

Singles' Day is known as an online shopping bonanza. (Photo is illustrative) (Photo: China News Service)

A married couple called police after going on Singles' Day shopping spree and spending all of their money in Fuzhou, Fujian Province on November 11.

The pair got into a heated argument after joining the world's biggest online shopping event but running out of cash before they could buy everything they wanted, reported the Chinese language China News Service.

24-year-old Li and her husband Zhang splurged almost 20,000 yuan (USD 3,142) on various items.

They got into a fight after Li accused her husband of being selfish and only buying expensive gifts for himself and his parents. Zhang blamed her for spending money on "useless junk".

The quarrelling continued into the early hours. Zhang finally called police at 3 AM, saying they needed help to put the argument to bed.

"You bought just bunch of rubbish. There is hundreds of yuan worth of clothes in your shopping cart. When are you going to have time to wear all of them? Why did you buy so much food when we don’t even know how to cook?" Zhang ranted when the police arrived.

"You only bought electronics which are useless and not even that much cheaper!" his wife responded.

Police advised them to be reasonable when spending money and not hurt each other's feelings over such trivial matters as shopping. The couple eventually calmed down and made up.

Couple calls cops after running out of money while shopping online | gbtimes.com

this is just ridiculous. In Canada, the police would not respond to that call. If you make a call like that to our police, if they come over they will fine you.

 

[AndrewJin]

this is just ridiculous. In Canada, the police would not respond to that call. If you make a call like that to our police, if they come over they will fine you.

How about u don't feel OK and want a free ride? Or your cat is on the tree refusing to climb down?

 

[Jlaw]

How about u don't feel OK and want a free ride? Or your cat is on the tree refusing to climb down?

No, they don't do that either. Police do not even attend to car accident unless it's serious. Yeah, lazy motherfuckers here lol. You will find many cops giving out speeding and parking tickets and sitting around in donut shops.

 

[AndrewJin]

No, they don't do that either. Police do not even attend to car accident unless it's serious. Yeah, lazy motherfuckers here lol. You will find many cops giving out speeding and parking tickets and sitting around in donut shops.

I just read a piece of news saying that a cop here takes responsibility of tomb-sweeping several deceased. Guess police in China is about babysitting.

Back to topic.
My parcel arrived when I was having my dinner today!

10000mAh power station + 20000mAh power station + 2 chargers

 

[Jlaw]

I just a piece of news saying that a cop here takes responsibility of tomb-sweeping several deceased. Guess police in China is about babysitting.

Back to topic.
My parcel arrived when I was having my dinner today!

10000mAh power station + 20000mAh power station + 2 chargers
View attachment 271386

Not a bad attitude at all imo. But police used to provide services like you helping elderly, bring a cat down from a tree, etc. That was back in the 70s.

 

[AndrewJin]

Not a bad attitude at all imo. But police used to provide services like you helping elderly, bring a cat down from a tree, etc. That was back in the 70s.

Lack of personnel?
One busy day for Chinese policemen is on the day of college entrance exam, they will be busy driving students and sending lost ID cards. If something serious happens, it's about armed police who is thought to be part of military, but they still do something like organising tourists in national parks during public holidays.