by Ella Kidron

Smart locks are growing rapidly in China, and JD is a driving force of this industry’s e-commerce boom. The retail giant received an award for its stellar performance in the smart locks space this week. The award for the industry’s “most valuable channel” of 2020 was presented at the “2020 China Smart Lock Industry Quality Improvement Plan” event, sponsored by Daily Hardware Technology Development Center of China, Youju Research Institute, Tencent Home and Youju New Media, held in Shenzhen on Dec. 15.

Qiang Yue (岳强), head of the smart home division under JD Home and Life shared an analysis of channel development in China’s smart lock industry at the event. According to JD’s big data, in the past three years, nearly one million customers have purchased smart locks, of which male consumers account for 65%. The three-year compound growth rate of sales of smart locks on JD has exceeded 50%.

But there is still huge potential for the market. Starting from a small base in 2015, the smart lock market in China has grown exponentially. Counterpoint Research expects the penetration of smart door locks in Chinese households to grow to 20% by the end of 2020, compared with only 5% in 2018.

On JD, the compound growth rate of traffic has reached 360% and page views increased seven times, indicating that there may be a handful of consumers curious about smart locks, but who have yet to take the plunge. Second-tier cities consumers make up 43% of the current base. Well-off, post-‘90s consumers are the main forces of consumption in this area, while post-’85 fathers are also gaining momentum. Millennials are the dominant consumer group for real estate in China; they have also adapted to a digital lifestyle having grown up surrounded by technology.

Qiang Yue, head of smart home, JD Home and Life

JD also published a “golden list” – a ranking of the hottest selling brands of smart locks, coinciding with the event. The ranking is based on 10 key characteristics including sales, growth rate, popularity, brand reputation and potential, among others. Products from leading brands like Xiaomi, Phillips, Samsung and more are on the list. This list, and other related “golden lists” in other categories give consumers an added level of confidence in the quality and performance of products when making purchases on JD.

(ella@jd.com)

by Hui Zhang

Household products saw strong sales growth on JD.com during the latest Double 12 Shopping Festival (Dec.1-12), with warmth-related, festive decorations, and smart household products topping the list.

As cold wave is sweeping across China, anything that brings extra warmth is highly welcomed by consumers. According to JD’s data, sales of pressure cookers increased by over 200% YOY and bath barrels increased by 150% YOY on Dec. 12. From Dec. 10-12, sales of beanbags, functional sofas, and cloth sofas increased by 110%, 800% and 300% YOY respectively. Silk quilts, wool quilts, electronic blanket increased by nearly 100% YOY, and sales of mattress increased by 120%. Sales of Chinese leading mattress brand De Rucci’s spring latex mattress increased by 30 times YOY and Thailand’s leading bedding manufacturer Paratex’s spring mattress increased by 100% YOY.

Ahead of Christmas, sales of festive decorations increased by over 100% from Dec.1-12. A total of 10,000 Christmas trees of various sizes were sold on Dec. 12 alone.

In addition to festive decoration products, smart household products have been favored by young consumers born after 1990. According to JD’s data, over 60% of the consumers of smart household products are in this age group. Smart toilets are the top product in this cateogry. The number of Panasonic smart toilet seat sold surpassed a million within only one minute on Dec.12.

“JD has become a destination for household products thanks to its guarantee of high-quality and its effective logistics services which make it easy for consumers to install [products] after purchasing online,” said a merchandising manager from JD Home and Lifestyle.

(zhanghui36@jd.com)

by Ella Kidron and Rachel Liu

“Double 12” (Dec. 12) festival stats reveal new consumer preferences for home appliances. The four traditional large home appliances – TV, refrigerator, washing machine and air conditioner – are not all consumers seek in the category.

Sales of educational TVs, which are chock full of content suitable for children increased more than 120% YOY. In their downtime, families increasingly prefer to bring the cinema experience home, opting for 65-inch and larger TVs. Sony’s 65-inch OLED TV increased 10-fold compared with the same period last year.

The preference for refrigerators with sterilization capabilities that cropped up in the beginning of the year has remained strong all year, with a sales increase of 3.5 times YOY for Double 12. Furthermore, as families have grown in recent years with the relaxation of related policies, consumers are opting for larger refrigerators. Seventy percent of consumers who bought fridges during Double 12 chose high capacity 400L and up refrigerators.

When looking at laundry equipment, more than 80% of customers will consider the drying function when buying washing machines – gone are the days of clotheslines for many. Air conditioners with “gentle wind”, preferred by mothers and infants, are very popular. One domestic brand, Zaiyuezi, saw sales of one such model double compared with last year. With more attention on overall ventilation, central air conditions systems have increased by 150% YOY. Sales indicate the future direction of AC R&D, moving from single temperature regulation, to more complex systems.

With higher demands for “eating well”, consumers are also having higher demand on cooking facilities. Double 12 data shows that more consumers prefer products from leading brands, and more intelligent products are getting popular.

As for small home appliances, products that can help enhance customers’ appearance are getting popular. Thirty percent of female customers are interested in anti-aging beauty instruments, a 37% increase YOY. Razors that can protect skin from acne saw a sales increase of 144% YOY, and became the first choice for 20% of customers. Customers are also paying more attention to cleaning and disinfectants. Air purifiers with a disinfectant function became the first choice for 90% of customers. Forty percent of customers who buy vacuums chose middle to high-end products, and sales of vacuums that are over RMB 3,000 yuan (~US$460) increased 200% YOY.

(ella@jd.com; liuchang61@jd.com)

by Vivian Yang

BMW Motorrad announced to open its official  flagship store on JD.com on Dec. 16, 2020. At the same time, the German motorcycle brand confirmed that R18, its latest-released cruiser model, which is the largest and heaviest BMW to date, will be offered on this platform.  The announcement was made at a BMW event in Beijing to celebrate the entrance of three R18 editions to the Chinese market.

This move is a significant leap forward in the cooperation between JD and BMW Motorrad. It helps to expand product varieties on JD Auto, attract more customers for BMW and offer more competitive prices and better services for Chinese riders.

Fei Zhan (left) of BMW Motorrad China and Qing Yan of JD Auto on the JD flagship store unveiling ceremony 

“Equipped with innovative retail concepts, BMW Motorrad hopes to explore new channels and try out diversified ways to engage different circles of users. The launch of the JD flagship store is an important move for us to broaden our touchpoints with more users. We will work together to provide users with a customized and immersive experience that reflects the Make-Life-A-Ride spirit that our brand upholds,” said Fei Zhan, director of BMW Motorrad China.

“With the rapid growth of China’s motorcycle market, more and more global brands have made their presence on JD and deepened collaboration with us.  BMW Motorrad’s joining is a key step for us to develop the high-end market, and it is also a landmark event for JD’s motorcycle business layout,” said Yan Qing, general manager of JD Auto.

Leveraging JD’s supply chain advantages, user base, big data and technologies, JD Auto stepped up its effort in building the motorcycle business since 2017 and has achieved fast progress. To date, it has established cooperation with over 30 famous motorcycle brands home and abroad, including BMW, Ducati, YAMAHA, Wuyang-Hongda, Peugeot and more.  It has also become the go-to platform for Chinese motorcycle fans and riders. It is estimated that over two million users have bought motorcycle-related products on JD.com in 2020.

(vivian.yang@jd.com)