Singles Day is not just about Alibaba.

While China’s largest eCommerce player may have created the concept, the entire online industry is sharing in the benefits of raised consumer awareness, matching promotional activity and discounting to attract their respective share of spending.

China’s second largest online retailer JD.com has revealed an increase in GMV of 140 per cent – substantially more than Alibaba.com’s 60 per cent, although obviously from a lower base.

JD.com, listed in the US, says mobile devices accounted for 74 per cent of orders and WeChat and Mobile QQ drive 52 per cent of new JD.com users during the 11.11 sale day.

With promotions across all categories beginning at midnight for the annual 24-hour event, JD.com saw its order volume exceed its full-day 2010 Singles Day total in just two minutes, its 2011 Singles Day total in 15 minutes and its 2012 figure in 36 minutes.

At 4:54 am on 11.11, orders on JD.com had surpassed the total number of orders on Singles Day 2013 and just before noon,JD.com topped its total orders for Singles Day 2014. By 6:26 pm JD.com had received more orders than it had for the last five Singles Days combined.

During the day, 74 per cent of total orders were placed via mobile platforms, including JD.com’s native app and through Tencent’s WeChat and Mobile QQ platforms, the increasingly popular social media platforms of choice among China’s growing population of mobile users. More than 52 per cent of first-time customers on JD.com during the day came from WeChat and Mobile QQ.

“Our record-breaking sales and accelerated growth for the day show that what truly matters to Chinese consumers is the quality, reliability and authenticity that only JD.com guarantees,” said Haoyu Shen, CEO of JD Mall.

“Across all product categories, from electronics to apparel to fresh food, we have seen tremendous growth because our customers trust JD.com to provide the highest product quality, most efficient service and fastest delivery.

“On mobile, our partnership with Tencent puts JD.com in front of more than half a billion WeChat and Mobile QQ users, a tremendous industry advantage that enabled us to reach and win over new customers during the sale.”

Home décor, apparel and footwear continues to be one of JD.com’s strongest segments, and saw the most orders out of any product category on November 11. During the day, JD.com sold more than 14 million articles of clothing and pairs of shoes, extending an exceptionally strong overall growth rate for this category. For example, Forever 21 one-day sales increased by 650 per cent compared to Singles Day 2014.

International brands continued to gain in popularity among JD.com’s shoppers, including top sellers such as Apple, Samsung, Adidas, New Balance, Columbia, The North Face, Philips, Nestle, Mead Johnson and Wyeth.

Other highlights include:

• Sales of wearable smart devices increased by 900 per cent compared to last year.
• Orders on JD Supermarket increased 190 per cent, including an increase for fresh food sales of 560 per cent and snack foods of 430 per cent.
• The number of customers who used Baitiao, JD Finance’s consumer credit line program, increased 800 per cent from last year’s one-day total.
• The top five product categories purchased using Baitiao credit lines were computers, luxury products, TVs, mobile phones and cameras.
• JD Worldwide, JD.com’s platform for imported goods, saw an increase in sales orders of 366 per cent compared with its October average. Top selling products on the platform for the day were milk powder and diapers, and products from the U.S. Mall and Japan Mall, both launched in 2015, proved most popular for shoppers on the company’s growing list of country-specific foreign mall platforms.

In addition, the company also announced highlights from the full November 1-11 sales event, which includes both the one-day sale and lead-up promotional period:

• The company sold more than 28.5 million “3C” products, including mobile phones, digital products, computers and office equipment.
• JD.com sold more than 2.87 million mobile phones.
• During the 11 days, JD.com sold 1.9 million WiFi routers and more than 1.2 million pairs of earphones.

This story first appeared on Inside Retail’s sister site, Inside Retail Asia.

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