INTHEBLACK December 2021 - Magazine - Page 33
Cameron Cooper
STORY CAMERON COOPER
T
his event may not be on the calendar for
shoppers in all countries just yet, but rest assured
that Singles’ Day is a very big deal.
It’s so huge, in fact, that the annual splurge of
discount retail therapy on 11 November in Mainland
China has become the world’s biggest 24-hour
shopping spree, with sales totalling 498.2 billion yuan
(about US$75 billion or A$103 billion) in 2020. That
puts other significant international shopping events
such as Black Friday, Cyber Monday and White Day
in the shade.
Also known as “Double 11”, Singles’ Day began in
the early 1990s as a counterpoint to Valentine’s Day, to
encourage people who are not in relationships to celebrate
being single and treat themselves to gifts. Today, it is the
flagship for global holiday economy events, alongside
Christmas, Chinese New Year and Thanksgiving, which
are critical to the profitability of many retailers, food and
beverage suppliers and travel businesses.
According to Kelly Tang, senior analyst with
Euromonitor International, the success of Singles’ Day
partly stems from “ubiquitous digital convenience”.
The proliferation of smartphones and the internet has
resulted in an online shopping boom, especially among
Chinese urban millennials and Gen Zs.
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