Over the past year, more than 5,000 new overseas brands have entered Tmall Global, and more than 2,000 small and medium-sized brands have achieved annual sales of over one million.
It is worth noting that another batch of small overseas brands on the Tmall Global platform has successfully attracted the favor and investment of large multinational groups.
In February of this year, the plant-based nutrition brand Orgain was wholly acquired by Nestlé. At the end of last year, the beauty brand Chantecaille, the Hollywood star hair care brand OUAI, the pure skin care brand Farmacy, and the niche ingredient skin care brand The Ordinary, which entered China for the first time through Tmall Global, have also been successively approved by Beiersdorf, Procter & Gamble, Estee Lauder and other big groups have income under their command.
The performance on the cross-border e-commerce platform reflects the development potential of niche brands in the domestic market to a certain extent. This is undoubtedly an important reference for foreign groups to explore opportunities in the Chinese market.
Taking advantage of the success of cross-border e-commerce “second venture”, niche brands such as OUAI and Farmacy received financing from giants
The relevant person in charge of Unilever said that the investment in the acquisition of the Japanese streamlined skin care brand RAFRA is precisely because of the growth trend of Japanese beauty in China and the excellent sales performance of the brand in Tmall International in the early days. RAFRA entered Tmall Global in 2017, and quickly occupied the sunscreen market with orange-scented sunscreen spray, gaining a large number of emerging young user groups.
“The new format of cross-border e-commerce has become a ‘touchstone’ for imported niche brands to start businesses in the domestic market.” According to the relevant person in charge of Tmall International, more than 5,000 new overseas brands have entered China through Tmall Global in the past year. More than 2,000 small and medium-sized brands have successfully tested the Chinese market and achieved annual sales of over one million yuan.
The beauty brand Shanteca entered China for the first time through Tmall Global in 2018, with sales increasing by 200% year-on-year, and hatching 2 beauty products with sales of tens of millions. Chantecaille, which has not yet opened branded offline stores in China, has shown growth potential with cross-border channels as its core channels. In 2021, the brand was officially acquired by the German Beiersdorf Group.
The rapid rise of niche brands on Tmall Global has benefited from the model advantages of cross-border e-commerce and the platform’s continuous improvement of cross-border supply chain capabilities. Tmall Global has set up six major procurement centers around the world, covering North America, Europe, Oceania and Asia-Pacific regions such as Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, China, etc., and has opened more than 1,300 cross-border logistics routes for sea, air and land transportation.
At the same time, more than 1.7 million square meters of bonded warehouses have been built in the domestic bonded area. Imported goods are sent directly from the place of origin, to domestic warehouse storage and distribution, and then to consumers. The time limit for cross-border online shopping is shortened to 2.5 days. Allow domestic consumers to easily buy global goods without going abroad.
The scale of the middle-class population and the continuous improvement of consumer confidence have made China a market that global brands are eagerly waiting for. As of November 2021, nearly 30,000 overseas brands from more than 80 countries and regions around the world have settled in Tmall Global, covering more than 5,800 categories, of which more than 80% of the brands entered China for the first time.
