Now in its ninth year, the annual Chinese online shopping festival Singles’ Day (11 November) is no longer just about Alibaba, but has morphed into a nation-wide shopping craze with e-commerce players other than Alibaba taking up a substantial share of the pie as well.

In the latest instalment of iClick Interactive’s China Expert series, Richard Johnson, our commercial director, explains how Singles’ Day has grown into its current manifestation, and how marketers can make the most of it.

It’s no longer just about Alibaba – but a nation-wide Shopping Craze According to the figures from China Ecommerce Research Center (CECRC, 100ec.cn), the 24-hour nation-wide online shopping blitz grossed a sales total of RMB254bn (USD$38.2bn/£29bn) this year, hitting a year-on-year growth of 45.2%. Alibaba’s Tmall accounted for 66.2% of the pie, posting yet another year of record sales of RMB168.3bn (USD$25.4bn/ 19.3bn).eMarketer, overall digital ad spending in China will reach USD$50.3bn (£37bn) in 2017 – of which 72% will go to mobile channels.

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