The emergence of new type of e-commerce
Chinese traditional e-commerce pattern, represented by Taobao, Tmall, and JD, features “shelf e-commerce,” which transfers goods from offline shelves to online shelves. Consumers with shopping needs can find the goods in the most efficient way through classified menus and search boxes of e-commerce platforms.
In recent years, new e-commerce formats, represented by Pinduoduo, Xiaohongshu, and Douyin, have brought China's e-commerce market into a new stage. With the rise of social e-commerce, interest e-commerce, livestream e-commerce, and various other new business forms, China’s e-commerce industry is undergoing a shakeup, shifting from "consumers searching for goods" to "goods searching for consumers."
These platforms proactively recommend consumers what they are looking for through social relations, content, scenes, and consumer preference data, which subtly drives their shopping decisions. Consumers no longer buy goods based on what they need, but what they see, and what sparks their interest.
The COVID-19 outbreak in early 2020 further accelerated the expansion of new e-commerce models:
Community group buying: Under the pandemic prevention and control, community residents tended to hoard daily necessities at home, accelerating the penetration of community group buying。
New retail: Home quarantine boosted the popularity of fresh e-commerce and instant delivery in the first and second-tier cities.
Live-streaming e-commerce: Stay-at-home economy also contributed to the booming short videos and live-streaming as people had more leisure time at home.
Alibaba, JD and Pinduoduo are the top 3 e-commerce powerhouses.
Alibaba, JD, Pinduoduo’s Earnings in 2021Q2
| Platform | 2021Q2 Revenue | YOY | Annual active users (12 months ending June 30, 2021) |
| Alibaba | 205.74 billion yuan | 34% | 828 million |
| JD | 253.8 billion yuan | 26.23% | 532 million |
| Pinduoduo | 23.05 billion yuan | 89.04% | 849.9 million |
Source: www.100EC.cn
The booming live-streaming and social e-commerce flourish new platforms.
Taobao, Douyin, and Kuaishou are major live streaming e-commerce platforms.
China Consumers Association’s “Online Survey Report on Consumer Satisfaction of Livestream E-commerce Shopping” shows that consumers who have watched Taobao Livestream account for the highest proportion of 68.5%, followed by Douyin Livestream and Kuaishou Livestream, accounting for 57.8% and 41.0%.
| Platform | User | Products | Operation model | Consumer portrait |
| Taobao | Year-on-year growth of 100% in 2020 | All categories | Brand self-livestream, Celebrity live-stream, KOL live-stream | Taobao and Tmall users. |
| Douyin | The average DAU is over 600 million | Makeup and clothing account for a high proportion | Short video & livestream | More than 50% are female, and the majority are born in the 1980s and 1990s. |
| Kuaishou | The average DAU is over 377 million | Most are low-priced goods within 100 yuan | KOL livestream | Female users account for 66.2%, and the post-80s account for 40.5%. |
Source: 2021H1 Content-Based Social E-Commerce Industry Analysis Report
Xiaohongshu, WeChat and Bilibili are popular social e-commerce platforms.
| Platform | Feature | User | Consumer portrait | E-commerce logics |
| Xiaohongshu | A lifestyle-focused content sharing platform | 100 million MAU | Female users account for more than 80%, and most of them are under 30 years old. Users in first- and second-tier cities account for more than 50%. | With many real evaluations, the platform is a collection of contents that closely follow the latest consumption trends, making the platform becoming a "shopping guide" affecting users' decisions. |
| One-stop solution to users' entertainment needs | 1.25 billion MAU | Nationwide | A comprehensive ecosystem comprising WeChat channels, WeChat Subscription Official Account, WeChat Service Official Account, WeChat Mini Programs, and WeChat Moments. | |
| Bilibili | Entertainment-based video sharing platform | 237 million MAU | Female users account for 57%, and those aged 18-35 account for 78%. Most users are from East and South China. | Attract users to buy products on the platform based on the influence and appeal of platform content IPs, mainly games, digital 3C, food, and beverage. |
Source: 2021H1 Content-Based Social E-Commerce Industry Analysis Report
