Alibaba Will Have Early Start To Singles Day In November

In a move that will likely see a large rise in sales, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd will begin its Singles Day shopping event ahead of schedule in 2020, Reuters reported Friday (Oct. 30).

This year’s mega event is being looked at as a way to measure how formidably consumer demand is rallying in China in the midst of indications that a rebound in household spending has begun widening.

Alibaba will provide two shopping periods. In addition to its usual Nov. 11 shopping period that lasts for 24 hours, the company will also provide a new time between Nov. 1 and Nov. 3. The company says it will debut over 2 million new items — two times the amount in 2019.

A partner at the Full Jet consulting firm in Shanghai, Sam Coopersmith, said per the report, “The longer 11-11 lasts, the more opportunity they have to make money.”

Wanqing Consultancy CEO Lu Zhenwang, who is an independent online shopping expert per the report, foresees the eCommerce company’s gross merchandise volume (GMV) expansion to be slight — at approximately 10 percent to 20 percent in contrast to 2019.

Chris Tung, chief marketing officer for Alibaba, said per the report on Thursday (Oct. 2) that he foresees COVID-19 to fuel sales of luxury merchandise as international travel restrictions stop consumers in China from buying in other countries.

The news comes as this year’s Singles Day shopping event could turn out to be a disappointment for some U.S. brands per a new AlixPartners poll.

Most of the Chinese consumers the firm polled — a strong 57 percent — say they will purchase fewer U.S. brands and items on Singles Day on Nov. 11.

A much smaller portion of those surveyed say they intend to purchase fewer European items and labels in 2020, at just below 40 percent.

A big 82 percent of those polled indicate they intend to purchase items through cross-border online shopping, with Chinese consumers still appreciative of the quality of foreign labels and merchandise.