Beauty and aesthetics are important staples of Chinese culture. As a result of this cultural aspect, Chinese women care a lot about beauty and appearance. Due to this high interest in fashion and beauty products, the Chinese market is full of useful and innovative fashion and beauty eCommerce platforms.
According to the World Economic Forum, 42% of all eCommerce trade occurs in China. Take a look at these top platforms from China and use their example to enhance your business and break into the Chinese market. It’s a whole world of opportunities, with a myriad of innovative and efficient business models.
1 – “https://www.meipai.com/”Meipai 美拍
One of the premier apps in the entire Chinese market, Meipai gives you the opportunity to advertise products to women of all ages. How does it function? Given the fact that video is the most popular marketing tool in China, it gives users and brands the opportunity to create their own content. Chinese people spend a lot of time using this app. It allows you to:
- Create videos for personal use, such as displaying products you’ve recently bought
- Use filters to create an altered version of yourself
- Amass followers and communicate with them through a direct messaging system
However, what makes this beauty app special is the massive number of opportunities for brands. By creating tutorials and promotional videos, brands can approach their audience and give them a closer look at new products. There is also an option to insert direct links into videos, making use of the infatuation the Chinese have for eCommerce shopping.
Unlike Amazon or Shopify, Meipai is a revolutionary tool for fashion and beauty brands, because of the social component. Word-of-mouth marketing is strong, due to the space for comments and impressions.
If you wish to start selling into China, Meipai is unavoidable. Studying it is essential for getting to know the audience and the ever-changing trends.
2 – Xiaohongshu 小红书
Meaning Little Red Book in Mandarin, Xiaohongshu is at the forefront of the Chinese eCommerce revolution. What makes it so special is the successful combination of social elements, along with advertising on a stable WooCommerce platform.
Xiaohongshu started off as the Chinese version of Pinterest, but its creators soon saw the potential to integrate eCommerce shopping options. What are some of the features of Xiaohongshu?
- It’s a great platform for content sharing. As the whole point of Xiaohongshu is sharing advice and media for other people to see, it’s easy to amass a big following.
- Advertising a brand is easy if you implement good product descriptions and quality web content, downloadable ebooks, brochures etc. Writing in English using online essay writing services is a good approach. College-Paper is one such site that can help you with all your writing needs. With a convincing product description, sales can skyrocket.
- Shopping tip sections are prominent, as users exchange reviews about brands and their experience with them.
- Using an advanced warehouse management system, the app allows international brands to become partners through the Fu Li She (House of Benefits) platform. Costs are minimal.
- Influencers have a big say on the network. Brands battle for sponsoring the country’s biggest celebrities, such as Fang Bingbing and many other pop stars. Scoring a good sponsorship equals popularity in China.
3 – Kaola
Kaola is amongst the most popular websites for people aged 20-40. The secret to their success lies in a stable WooCommerce platform, which emphasizes freedom. How does it function? Kaola is the owner of some of the largest warehouse facilities in China. Crossborder fulfillment is possible due to their surprisingly low costs for foreign and international brands.
All a foreign brand has to do to become a partner is to sign a contract and work with the website’s executives on pricing and sales programs. However, brands are not forced to use Kaola’s warehouses.
It’s possible to use third-party teams that can orchestrate logistics and delivery, through a personal and independent warehouse management system.
Popular fashion and cosmetic brands use Kaola as the gateway to start selling into China and using the potential of the market. The Chinese love foreign brands, especially French beauty and cosmetics powerhouses like L’Oreal and others. Due to this fact, it’s fairly easy to gain a following.
However, don’t forget to offer premium services. Chinese people are big on word-of-mouth marketing, and one bad experience can have catastrophic consequences. Sourcing cooperation is a big reason why Kaola is successful and why it succeeds. They keep on bringing in new foreign brands onto the site, all the time.
4 – THE BEAST
The BEAST is a unique site, mostly because it caters to upper-middle class and upper-class customers. Unlike other eCommerce sites, which specialize in providing reasonably-priced products, the BEAST is dedicated to more niche products.
On the site, you will find many unique and custom-designed products that range from jewelry to floral products. They are very careful about which products they pick to sell the website, so collaborating with the BEAST is far from easy. Brands that succeed gain a reputation amongst the country’s elite. This happens for three reasons.
- Celebrity influence. Since the BEAST offers premium products, they are keen to sponsor celebrities who will wear their products both in public and in advertisements. This influencer-centered advertising method ensures that their products are premium and something not seen on “regular” eCommerce sites.
- Co-branding. BEAST has become much more than a site, which is something many Chinese eCommerce stores fail to accomplish. They constantly seek out new ways to promote the brand, focusing on co-branding. One prominent example is the New Balance x BEAST collaboration. The iconic American footwear brand launched 3 new colorways of their 520 model. This was exclusive to the Chinese market.
- Limited edition products. Most of the products on the BEAST are sold in limited quantities, generating feelings of hype and exclusivity.
5 – LOOK
LOOK is another unique Chinese eCommerce projects. It brings together more than 200 global fashion brands and platforms to create an exclusive shopping site. The reason why it’s so regarded are the many options for customization.
Every fashion blogger and brand can create their own store, within the main website! There are unlimited options in terms of design, so there are no branding limits whatsoever. This is reminiscent of the WordPress concept in the US, but with a far more organized method of approach.
Influencers like Gogoboi use this platform for reaching their fans and sell premium, limited products. It’s a concept that many western brands and eCommerce entrepreneurs should look up to.
Concluding thoughts
Chinese eCommerce trends are unique and innovative, constantly developing new methods of marketing and sales. You should follow the eCommerce trends in China, as it boasts a myriad of successful business practices that will shape the future.
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Author
Alexandra Reay has been working as a journalist and editor in one of the finest Melbourne publishing agencies for 3 years. She is also a professional content writer who prefers to do research on the following topics – self-improvement, technology innovations, global education development ets. Feel free to contact her at Twitter.
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