Tmall’s cat, VR may bolster Alibaba’s 2016 Singles’ Day haul by 29 per cent, analysts say

Alibaba Group Holdings’ 2016 Singles’ Day online shopping extravaganza will likely increase 29 per cent from last year’s haul to a record 125 billion yuan (US$18.45 billion), according to a South China Morning Post survey of five analysts tracking the company.

Top among this year’s attractions is a cat mascot -- taking the cue from Pokemon Go -- that can be followed via smartphones, exchangeable for discounts and prizes. Chinese shoppers will be able to browse in Macy’s New York store and other malls through using virtual reality goggles on Alibaba’s Tmall and Taobao platforms.

“We want to turn e-commerce into entertainment, and make shopping fun,” said Alibaba’s executive vice chairman Joe Tsai, ahead of a Shenzhen gala party counting down to 24 hours of shopping frenzy starting at midnight on Friday.

With advertisements on newspapers, magazines, China’s broadcast networks and even the trams rambling along Hong Kong streets, very few people are unaware of the planet’s largest online shopping event. In the process, Alibaba is upending China’s retailing industry.

The Hangzhou-based company has set up 20,000 stations in China’s countryside, making it easier for the nation’s 600 million rural residents to shop for imported products and services from Head & Shoulders shampoo to a Mauritius holiday, and even a 2017 Ford Mustang muscle car, all at discounts of as much as 50 per cent off normal prices.

“More brands will have their celebrity endorsers take part in live webcasts of Singles’ Day marketing campaigns this year to interact directly with consumers,” Zhao said.