by Vivian Yang

As of 23:59 on June 18th Beijing time, JD.com reported a total transaction volume of RMB 379.3 billion yuan for 2022 JD618 Grand Promotion, which exceeds last year’s RMB 343.8 billion yuan.

As JD Retail’s CEO Lijun Xin noted, by fulfilling a responsible supply chain, the company is gaining increasing trust and support from customers, merchants, farmers and partners both online and offline who demonstrated unprecedented enthusiasm for this year’s 618 Grand Promotion. In return, JD delivered more attentive services, user-friendly sales policies, more convenient consumer experience and greener products for consumers, doing its utmost to ensure the liveliness of people’s normal lives.

“For the first time, the true value of the supply chain and the society’s perception of it are aligned at this year’s JD618,” said Xin. “With the whole society’s reflection and support, we believe that the entire supply chain industry is facing greater development opportunities ahead and JD is ready to embrace the era of supply chain value.”

Thanks to the company’s solid supply chain infrastructure and digitally intelligent technologies, JD Logistics’ same or next-day delivery services have gone deeper into the country, now covering 94 percent of counties and 84 percent of townships across China.

This year’s shopping festival spotlights seven key consumption trends ranging from consumers’ rising demand for quality services, new and greener products, to the fast growth of omni-channel retail, agricultural products and more. Read the details of the consumption highlights of 2022 JD618 here.

The 19th JD618 Grand Promotion this year, under the theme of “Responsible Supply Chain”, kicked off at 8 p.m. on May 31 and will officially end on June 20.

 

(vivian.yang@jd.com)

by Vivian Yang and Doris Liu

“JD.com is ready to embrace the era of supply chain value,” said Lijun Xin, CEO of JD Retail, at the JD618 media briefing session on June 18, noting that the outbreaks of Omicron in China have led the whole society to recognize the value of supply chain in an explicit and profound way. JD.com would continue to open its supply chain infrastructure, technologies, expertise and capabilities to push forward the development of the whole industry, he added.

Lijun Xin, CEO of JD Retail at the JD618 media briefing session

The 19^th 618 Grand Promotion  this year is themed “Responsible Supply Chain.”  Several key highlights are revealed through the shopping festival’s consumption data from 8 p.m. on May 31 to date, all of which provide insight into consumption in the second half of the year.  The shopping festival will officially end on June 20.

1. Service quality matters

Good services weigh increasingly heavily, if not being a decisive factor, in people’s shopping choices. At this year’s shopping festival, consumers gave greater approval to JD’s premier customer services, of which JD offers a total of 185, covering the entire consumption process before, during and after sales.

Robot vacuums and air purifiers that promise 30-day free trial and “replacement over repair within 180 days” have seen sales jump by 200 percent. Sales of cracked phone screen insurance increased more than 300 percent YoY, and over 80 percent of users who purchased the insurance opted for an unlimited repair guarantee.

Boosted by JD’s free tire-change service and three-year quality guarantees, the transaction volume of tire products on JD Auto surged 300 percent YoY.

People’s awareness of their health has increased dramatically. The early screening service of critical illnesses is among the most popular health services ordered on JD Health, with its transaction volume rocketing by 50 times YoY. Sales of furniture products in J Shop, JD’s omni-channel fashion and home stores, that were tagged with a prepaid insurance settlement, increased over 160 percent. The transaction volume of online glasses ordering services increased six-fold YoY, to name just a few.

2. New products prevail

Consumers showed strong interest in the new generation of products with novel technologies, designs, and functions, or those that can bring brand new experiences, propelling manufacturers to present products with better quality and ideas. On the Super Day of the consumer electronics category during JD618, the transaction volume of gaming laptops priced over RMB 10,000 yuan grew by 120 percent compared with the same period last year.  The average growth rate of emerging home appliances such as gaming TVs, fresh-air conditioners and smart vacuum cleaners increased over five-fold YoY.

Transaction volume of new outdoor and camping products rose by 300 percent, and sun protection clothing was up six-fold YoY.

3. Omni-channel accelerates

JD’s on-demand retail services including the Shop Now program and JDDJ are providing greater nearby amenities for consumers from online to offline. Deeply connected with more than 150,000 offline stores in over 1,700 cities and counties across China, the omni-channel solution is empowering brick-and-mortar stores of all product categories with richer marketing plans and one-hour delivery services to customers within 3-5 kilometers radius.

During the 618 period, JD also opened its physical home appliance flagship stores in 12 Chinese cities, such as Nanjing, Yangzhou, Wuhu, Liuzhou and more, further expanding shopping experiences and tangible engagement with a broader range of consumers.

The transaction volume of JD Health’s medicine procurement for small and medium-sized drug stores and clinics increased 48 percent, with over 90 percent of these procurers coming from the county or lower-level regions.

4. SMEs and merchants in recovery

As the coronavirus has brought unprecedented uncertainties, JD introduced 30 measures for JD618 to support SMEs and merchants’ businesses and contribute to the solid development of the real economy.

SMEs’ ROI was increased by more than 20 percent during the shopping festival. Transaction volume of over 27,000 brands and 30,000 stores partnered with JD Super, JD’s omni-channel supermarket, saw an increase of five times YoY . In particular, the omni-channel business of Wal-Mart, China Resources, Yonghui increased 6.6 times YOY in sales.

JD’s data showed that more than 4,000 merchants of consumer electronics doubled their sales YOY on the category’s Super Day.

5. Green consumption on the rise

Ahead of JD618 on May 20, JD.com announced the “Green Impact Initiative” to green-label one million kinds of products conforming to a set of environmentally friendly standards to guide people’s responsible consumption.

As of June 5, over 11.57 million products related to green consumption were sold on JD.com, with sales of electric cars up 200 percent YOY and toilets with water efficiency rating up by 8 times in sales respectively.

6. Farmers’ produce items gain popularity

Agricultural products have been emphasized in this year’s campaign as part of rural revitalization initiatives to promote quality produce and boost farmers’ income. To achieve this purpose, JD’s logistics infrastructure continued to consolidate in rural areas, providing supply chain services for more than 1,000 origins and industrial belts of agricultural specialties all across China.

For instance, transaction volume of kiwifruit grown in Sichuan province increased by more than 10 times compared with last month, while sales of Yangshan peach from Jiangsu province and Dongkui waxberry from Zhejiang province rose over six times month over month.

Moreover, since JD’s logistics network enables the agricultural products to be transported smoothly, it can be seen on JD.com that 51 percent of Inner Mongolia’s lamb went to Beijing and 41 percent of the seafood from Zhejiang province to Sichuan.

7. Responsible supply chain

A responsible supply chain, by JD’s definition, is a combination of both hard and soft capabilities, namely the infrastructure represented by its nationwide warehouse networks and other modernized logistics facilities, and the ability to efficiently integrate all the resources.

As of now, 45 of JD’s “Asia No. 1” intelligent logistics parks and 1,400 warehouses across the country have built a highly integrated logistics infrastructure as well as a network of warehousing and delivery with multiple tiers. The growing logistics network guarantees an end-to-end product circulation, leading to a better customer experience.

JD’s smart supply chain system also synergizes intelligently with 81.2 percent of suppliers of JD’s self-operated stores. With the help of JD’s C2M solution, JC2M intelligent manufacturing platform, the new product launch cycle has been shortened by 67 percent from before to more precisely cater to the target customers.

Technologically, JD Cloud saw a 154.5 percent growth in peak user visits per second as compared to the same period last year. JD Intelligent City Consumption Promotion Platform issued nearly RMB 1 billion yuan of consumption vouchers in more than 10 cities.

 

(vivian.yang@jd.com; liujun215@jd.com)

by Yiming Yan

JD.com kicked off its peak night of the 19^th JD 618 Grand Promotion at 8 pm on June 17, resulting in the year’s biggest consumption boom so far, with 11 stores’ turnover exceeding RMB 100 million yuan in less than 10 minutes—a clear indication of the recovery of consumer demand in major cities and the wider market.

“Quality consumption” has been a common goal for users and retailers during the JD618 Grand Promotion this year. The turnover of ultrabooks, which are leading high-end consumer trends, climbed by two times year over year in the first ten minutes. Air conditioners, gaming TVs, RF (radio frequency) beauty instruments, and other new stylish household appliances are also in demand, with sales of 65+ inches TV exceeding the entire day last year in just ten minutes.

What’s more, since June, the trend of resuming work and production has resulted in structural changes in categories, shifting consumption from “home consumption” to “productivity consumption,” guiding consumption structure development to a more reasonable proportion. Office stationery had a 100 percent year-on-year growth, and home printers had a 200 percent year-on-year growth in the first 10 minutes of the peak night.

The ongoing development toward more premium products remains strong, with social consumption becoming more individualized and diverse. Users’ demand for products has extended throughout the entire life cycle of consumption: Before, during, and after-sales. “Services-driving-consumption” has continued to take shape. The turnover of home appliance trade-ins climbed 6 times year-over-year in the first 10 minutes of the peak night, and the turnover of JD appliances’ value-added services increased 150 percent year-over-year.

Consumers in Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, and other overseas markets were also enthralled. The first order for JD’s global sales platforms came from Chicago, and the first order for JoyBuy, JD’s B2B cross-border e-commerce platform, came from Indonesia. Chinese domestic brands have seen a 128 percent boost in global sales year over year since the start of the JD618 Grand Promotion.

Following a slow consumer market in April-May, JD 618’s peak night also paid great attention to assisting small and medium-sized businesses in the industrial zone, as well as the regeneration of the countryside. The turnover of Yunnan small grain coffee increased 5 times year on year, while the turnover of Anxi Tieguanyin tea increased 240 percent year-on-year in the first 10 minutes of the peak night.

According to a third-party organization’s report on “New Trends in Online Shopping Consumption,” the pandemic has reshaped online shopping habits, with respondents being more concerned about delivery time and availability of goods, and JD.com being preferred by 88.9 %percent of consumers as a reliable channel, ranking first in the industry.

“Unlike earlier JD618s, which focused solely on economic and industrial value, this year’s JD618 Grand Promotion also includes social value,” said Wei Jianguo, vice chairman of the China Center for International Economic Exchanges and a former vice-minister of the Ministry of Commerce.

 

(yanyiming1@jd.com)

by Doris Liu

Sales on JD Worldwide, JD.com’s cross-border e-commerce marketplace, surged dramatically with hundreds of brands more than doubling in the first 24 hours after the JD618 Grand Promotion officially kicked off at 8 p.m. (BJT) on May 31.

After the eight-day warm-up phase for pre-orders, JD Worldwide saw the transaction value of its duty-free business rise 20 times year-on-year (YOY) and its cross-border surrogate shopping business was up by more than seven times YOY in the first 24 hours of the mid-year shopping festival.

According to JD’s data, during the first 24 hours, sales of cross-border food, beverage and fresh products increased by 160 percent YOY, in which imported alcoholic beverages went up nine times compared with a year before. Sales of imported small kitchen appliances jumped 128 percent YOY, indicating that customers have gradually changed their lifestyle by cooking more at home because of the pandemic. Meanwhile, as children rely more on online learning, the transaction value of imported electronic education devices boomed by around 17 times YOY. Imported moisturizing lotion also saw a YOY rise of eight times.

Children’s products also had a natural surge as June 1st is Children’s Day, with sales of imported baby vitamins and game equipment soaring by more than seven times and 118 percent YOY respectively.

In terms of JD Worldwide’s National Pavilions, Finland, Singapore and Denmark ranked Top 3 in sales.

Demand for imported goods is on the rise, as more and more customers turn to consumption upgrade. With JD’s over 580 million active users, JD Worldwide is able to empower more overseas brands and third-party merchants to gain a firm foothold in the Chinese market, and satisfy customers with a growing range of superior products and services.

 

(liujun215@jd.com)

by Vivian Yang

The 19^th JD618 Grand Promotion officially kicked off at 8 p.m. on May 31 after an eight-day pre-order phase. In the first 10 minutes of the mid-year shopping festival, the sales of a number of brands exceeded RMB 100 million yuan, including Xiaomi, Midea, Haier, Lenovo, Apple, HONOR, Huawei, SONY, Asus, Siemens and more.

Cellphones, air conditioners, Zongzi (Chinese sticky rice dumplings for Dragon Boat Festival, which falls on June 3 this year), baby formula and toys were the hottest search keywords in those first 10 minutes, according to JD’s data, signaling the resilience and deep potential of the Chinese consumption market.

JD Logistics fully leverages its highly efficient supply chain system, diversified fulfillment models and coordination with local communities in accordance with anti-COVID policies to deliver orders quickly across the country. At 8.10 p.m., a resident of Chaoyang district in Beijing surnamed Li received her order of some baby formula, diapers and a toy within ten minutes through JD’s on-demand retail program Shop Now in time for her family to celebrate Children’s Day the next day.

The work-from-home economy has evolved into a rising consumer demand for better home-living scenarios. Sales of fridges and washing machine packages, quiet range hoods, air fryers, and robotic vacuum cleaners are all seeing strong growth. Over a hundred home brands on JD.com reached double sales growth in the first 10 minutes.  Electronics products such as tablets, home use printers and projectors, ready-to-cook products, kitchenware, and home workout products such as smart mirrors and massage guns, are among the popular categories during this shopping festival.

JD Worldwide offers cross-border imports to Chinese customers. Nearly 150 overseas brands saw more than 200 percent sales growth in the first 10 minutes. Sales of nearly 100 sub-categories exceeded 100 percent growth YoY. The top 3 brands in sales are Nintendo, Swarovski and a2 milk powder.

JD Cloud laid a solid technological foundation to support the smooth operation of the sales gala, as the user access peak per second increased 129 percent in the first 10 minutes.

JD Retail CEO Lijun Xin noted at an earlier launch event that this year’s shopping festival aims to create a better customer experience by offering premier products with the best prices and tentative services, and at the same time, the company will do the utmost to support people’s vibrant life through a responsible supply chain.

This year’s 618 Grand Promotion opened at 8 p.m. so that consumers did not need to stay up late. JD.com put this in motion for the first time during last year’s Singles Day shopping festival on November 11.

Instead of getting different coupons, JD618 platform offers an immediate RMB 50 yuan discount for every qualified RMB 299-yuan purchase, making the shopping process even simpler this time.

With 185 basic services and over a hundred shopping guarantees in place, this year’s 618 Grand Promotion will create an encircling protection service for customers whenever and wherever they shop.

 

(vivian.yang@jd.com)

by Doris Liu

The home appliance market is increasingly focused on satisfying the needs of modern living scenarios and life values, according to a white paper released by JD.com and market consultancy All View Cloud on May 27, with consumers’ demand shifting from being driven by basic functions to life quality.

The white paper analyzed the current consumption trends from the dimensions of market, demand, consumers, scenarios and more, indicating that the concept of new home appliances is inevitable in terms of market development.

Chinese consumers are experiencing multiple changes in living space, family size and lifestyle, accompanied by a series of newly-created scenarios in recent years such as entertainment spaces for games and movie watching; kitchens with more use of built-in and integrated home appliances; and pet living spaces with smart devices, which in turn have stimulated the rapid growth of the new home appliance market.

According to the China Center for Information Industry Development, China’s home appliance market recovered comprehensively in 2021 after a COVID-related slump in 2020, with retail sales rising by 5.7 percent year-on-year (YOY) to RMB 881.1 billion yuan.

As the pandemic has fanned demand for home appliances, entertainment TV sets on JD.com saw a spike of 4.5 times in 2021 sales YOY; meanwhile the number of searches and new launches went up 1.7 and 2 times respectively, according to the white paper.

In regard to kitchen appliances, 25 percent of the middle-aged group and 45 percent of consumers who need home renovation prefer built-in refrigerators. The sales value of the ultra-thin flat built-in refrigerators in 2021 on JD.com climbed 2.5 times YOY in popularity, with the number of searches and new launches rising 100 and 50 percent respectively.

Another trend of integrated appliances was also underlined. During JD’s Singles Day Grand Promotion in 2021, sales of fresh air ventilation and air-conditioning integrated systems exceeded the annual turnover of 2020, while sales of products that integrate multiple functions of a regular and steam oven, range hood and stove system jumped 4 times compared with that of 2020.

At the same time, the younger generation born after 1990 has become the main consumer group, affecting the market with their product demand in both function and attractive looks. For instance, according to JD Home Appliances, retro-styled small electric appliances grew 3 times YOY in turnover in 2021, meaning that consumers tend to embed their life values in product selection as well.

The concept of new home appliances leads the way for the industry. As future products will need to cater to consumers’ preferences in function, look and use experience in various scenarios, JD Home Appliances will collaborate with more brands to not only promote the business, but also upgrade the industrial structure.

 

(liujun215@jd.com)