Belarus’s JD.com and Douyin online stores woo Chinese consumers with chocolates and crisps
- Douyin live-stream attended by Yuri Senko, Belarus’s ambassador to China, attracts about 207,000 views
- The stores on Douyin and JD.com have been conceived by a joint venture between Beijing and Minsk
It hosted a live-streaming session on its Douyin channel on Tuesday to promote products such as chocolates and crisps to Chinese audiences, who could place orders within the live-streaming channel.
The live stream, which was attended by Yuri Senko, Belarus’s ambassador to China, attracted about 207,000 views and briefly rose to second place on Douyin’s goods promotion rankings, which are based on engagement and rating.
The stores on Douyin and JD.com, which were launched last month, have been conceived by Great Stone Industrial Park, a joint venture between Beijing and Minsk. Belarus’ Douyin account, which regularly posts videos about living, travelling and studying in the country, is followed by more than 209,000. The store has sold more than 23,000 units of various goods, according to its front page. The Belarus JD.com shop has a follower base of 13,000 people.
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The country’s embassy in China and Great Stone Industrial Park did not immediately respond to inquiries made by the Post.
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China is, however, Belarus’s second-largest trading partner. In May this year, China exported goods worth US$164 million to the country of 9.4 million people, and imported goods worth US$135 million, according to customs data compiled by the Observatory of Economic Complexity. China’s key import from Belarus is fertiliser.
Belarus is not the first country to launch stores on the short video platform – France and South Africa also have channels on Douyin, which they use to sell wine.
Russia also has a flagship store on JD.com, where it offers various kinds of products, ranging from honey to biscuits. In March, some Chinese consumers rushed to buy Russian products to show their support for Moscow soon after its invasion of Ukraine.
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The model of having a country-specific e-commerce channel targeting Chinese consumers was started by Alibaba Group Holding, which owns the South China Morning Post, in 2015, when its Tmall Global launched a mini-site for South Korean merchants. The US, UK, France, Spain, Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Türkiye have also opened official shops on Tmall since.
