Live-commerce continues to be a driving force in this year’s Singles Day, says AlixPartners survey

• 85% respondents intend to spend the same or more this year compared to last year.
• 97% respondents plan to watch livestreams, mainly on Taobao (83%). 76% plan to watch ahead of the shopping event, up 14% from last year. 94% of Gen Z shoppers claimed they would spend via livestreaming.
• 55% of consumers expressed their preference for national brands over foreign brands.

Shanghai (28 October 2021) – Singles Day (also known as Double 11 or 11.11) will be prominently driven by livestreaming shopping this year, according to the latest Singles Day report from AlixPartners, a global consulting firm. AlixPartners also found that 85% of consumers intend to spend the same or more this year compared to last year, while only 8% plan to spend less due to considerations in sustainability.

This is the fourth year AlixPartners has conducted its survey of Chinese consumers ahead of Singles Day (November 11). More than 2,000 consumers from all regions in China participated in this survey.

According to the survey, half of the respondents intend to spend over RMB 3,000 this year. This includes 31% from tier-3 or -4 cities with a similar budget and an additional 12% more consumers from tier-1 and new tier-1 cities (such as Hangzhou and Chengdu) plan to spend over RMB 10,000 on Singles Day.

China’s early recovery from COVID-19 has permanently shifted the shopping habits of local consumers. 36% of those surveyed suggested they would shop online because of convenience, as well as safety concerns around the pandemic. Notably, live shopping has evolved as the top overall trend - 76% said they would watch livestreams ahead of the actual Singles Day this year. Consumers are watching livestreams as a warmup to plan their purchases ahead of time.

Taobao is not only the key shopping channel, but also the most popular livestreaming platform for Singles Day, which 83% of surveyed consumers will be using to watch live videos. One main reason for consumers to use livestreaming is to understand detailed product information of items they are considering purchasing (65%), which is particularly important for beauty and skincare shoppers (72%). Examples of attractive livestreaming content found from those surveyed were personalized discount offers pushed in social groups (53%), and exclusive discounts or free gifts offered (53%).

Livestreaming will also continue to drive Singles Day sales this year - 32% of surveyed consumers said they would spend half or above of their budget via livestreams, increased by 14% compared to last year. Among Gen Z shoppers, as many as 94% claimed they would spend via livestreaming, whereas authenticity and trustworthiness are the core product selection criteria (49%).

Britton Russell, a Director & Greater China Lead for Consumer & Retail practice at AlixPartners Hong Kong, comments, “Chinese consumers have become more price and quality conscious after COVID. Livestreaming is a key channel for them to get a full download on product information before making shopping decisions. We are also seeing a similar trend emerging in other countries, but China is leading. In a time where the idea of live commerce is so widely accepted across the country, a successful Singles Day campaign likely will depend on how successful the pre-event livestreaming activities are.”

Meanwhile, surveyed consumers are planning to make 73% of their Singles Day purchases on local brands, showing a 3% increase from 2020. In particular, 55% cited national loyalty as the key reason. 39% pointed out that they are still upset with certain foreign brands who have challenged China’s domestic production.

Kenny Yao, a Director at AlixPartners Shanghai, comments, “Younger Chinese shoppers are also gradually growing a sense of national pride. Chinese Gen Z no longer seek high-end foreign brand names purely for social status. They are looking for products that can truly represent their identity, meaning it is more challenging than ever to maintain brand loyalty among this group.”

For foreign brands, collaboration with domestic brands or local key opinion spreaders (“KOS”) may prove to be the most effective marketing strategy, however, among those who are showing support for foreign brands despite it all, the promise of quality and design is their key interest (62%).

For more survey findings, please click here.

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About the Report

AlixPartners Singles Day Report, was based on an online survey conducted October 5 – 12, 2021 of 2,000 Chinese consumers aged 18 or above across all regions, demographics and income levels who intend to participate in this year’s Singles Day sale. 

 

About AlixPartners

AlixPartners is a results-driven global consulting firm that specializes in helping businesses successfully address their most complex and critical challenges. Our clients include companies, corporate boards, law firms, investment banks, private equity firms and others. Founded in 1981, AlixPartners is headquartered in New York, and has offices in more than 20 cities around the world. For more information, visit www.alixpartners.com.

 

Media Contact: 

Crystal Leung, AlixPartners
crleung@AlixPartners.com
+852 2236 3512

Angela Chung, Finsbury Glover Hering (Hong Kong)
Angela.Chung@FGH.com
+852 3166 9880

Snowy Tang, Finsbury Glover Hering (Shanghai)
Snowy.Tang@FGH.com
+86 184 2062 4066

Yi Wang, Finsbury Glover Hering (Beijing)
Yi.Wang@FGH.com
+86 186 2315 5173