ByteDance-owned Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, is taking on Meituan in various segments of China’s vast on-demand local services sector. Photos: Shutterstock
When Meituan founder and chief executive Wang Xing was asked last November about the rapid rise of competition in China’s on-demand local services sector, he suggested that the company was way ahead of any would-be rival.
“We can better meet users’ demand … and merchants’ needs,” Wang said in a conference call with analysts after Beijing-based Meituan reported a 1.2 billion yuan (US$179 million) net profit in the three months to September, ending seven consecutive quarters of losses.