Four updates this week for Western brands operating in China: The 2026 618 festival hit 934 billion RMB in sales, up 4 percent, led by Tmall China’s 618 shopping festival, the country’s largest mid-year online sale, finished at 934 billion RMB (about 130 billion USD) in total sales across all platforms, a 4.0% increase over last year. Tmall ranked first, …
China Digital Top News: Late April 2026 Five updates this week for Western brands operating in China: Xiaohongshu builds cross-border platform to help Chinese merchants sell in 8 foreign markets Xiaohongshu will launch Redshop, its first cross-border outbound platform, in June 2026. Redshop opens in 8 markets at launch: Hong Kong, Macao, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, …
Mini-programs continue thriving in China’s digital ecosystem. Up to 2026, there are more than 1.1 Billion WeChat mini-programs attracting around 410 million daily active users. WeChat mini-programs are a very complex piece of technology/design, so I’ll answer the questions in 3 parts: Do you want to create a WeChat Mini-program for your brand? Feel free to contact us. What are …
Tik Tok brought with it many new trends, some fun, some a bit more concerning. Among the most “New Age” trends on the platform, was the idea that “Healing crystal” could give you health, fortune and love. Superstars such as Kim Kardashian have supported the benefits of crytals worldwide. These products, often manufactured in China, have now started to get …
On May 29, JD.com announced an upgraded strategic partnership with Xiaohongshu, launching the “Red-JD Plan.” Starting from June 5th 2025, except for a few special categories, all brands and merchants on JD.com will be able to use Xiaohongshu’s “Direct to App Access” feature. On May 7th, Red had already announced a similar integration with Tmall on May 7th. In practice: …
Online marketing in China is different from any other place in the world. Cost-per-click or CPM ads play a smaller parts in the advertising mix. Instead, influencers are an essential marketing tool in China. Small influencers (Key Opinion Customers or KOCs) are particularly essential. Let’s learn how to leverage KOCs to boost your business in China. Livestreaming campaigns Live-streaming campaigns …
Red has grown to become an essential marketing platform in China. However, evaluating Red’s impact on sales has been a longstanding problem. There is now a solution : Red Star (Xiaohongxing / 小红星) enables to connect Red traffic with Tmall sales. What is Xiaohongxing ? Xiaohongxing is a tracking system that enables to know : The system enables tracking orders …
Livestreaming started taking off in China back in 2016, that is almost a decade ago. While this realisation will make any China marketer feel ancient, does it mean Livestreaming is a thing of the past ? Certaintly not. Let’s look at the China livestreaming trend in 2025, and understand the key tactics to leverage it for your brand. Livestreaming gained …
The rise of DeepSeek, business-friendly signals from the administration and turmoil in the United States have led many businesses to reconsider China as a key market for 2025. But what is the best way to enter the Chinese market in 2025 ? Here are five ways. Part 1 : who can enter the Chinese market in 2025 ? Gone are …
China’s marketing landscape is becoming increasingly localized this year, striking a delicate balance between genuinely understanding GenZ and overdoing it. Spend over 5 minutes on social media anywhere in the world, and you’ll see a funny video involving a cat (a “meme”). But in China, you’ll also see brands using such videos to grab attention Gen Z’s attention. Meanwhile, cat …
