Nanjingers certainly like a bargain. And it’s no secret; the little radishes are well known for their frugality all over the country. But now it’s official; turns out they like the cheap stuff more than anyone else in all of China.
But being frugal doesn’t mean they don’t have money. Quite the opposite. And that’s one of the facts reflected in the earnings reported recently from one of China’s biggest online sales.
The summary of the money pouring in to the “618 Grand Promotion” by JD.com (Jingdong; 京东) was published midway through the campaign on 11 June. Therein it was found that shoppers in Nanjing have been the most active, snapping up bargains more than those anywhere else, making the order volume from our city number 1 in China.
Other interesting facts to emerge from the sales data released include those as to the popularity of group buying. And it is in the northeastern city of Haerbin where group buys are most popular, with each group spending an average this year of more than ¥1,000.
Elsewhere, online shopping’s so-called “night owl” champion is in the south. In Guangzhou, 10 percent of orders were made between 00:00 and 05:00.
Finally, while the service economy grows across the country, it is Beijingers who have been taking the most advantage of buying services online. Topping the list, car, life and sports services.
As the name infers, Jingdong’s 618 Grand Promotion is being held this year from 1-18 June as a celebration of the company’s 18 years in providing services to consumers all over China. Pre-sale orders that were this year up 640 percent compared to 2020 were partly the result of incentives such as 30-day price protection, free delivery and worry-less return services.
Jingdong is one of the two big online retailers in China and a major competitor to Alibaba-run Tmall. Creators of WeChat, Tencent, has a 20 percent share in Jingdong.
In August of 2020, Jingdong posted a net profit of US$2.3 billion for the second quarter of the year and a customer base of 417 million users, reported the Financial Times.
