Let’s be real, nobody really needs an excuse to go on a personal shopping spree. But, clearly there are way more people subscribing to this “treat yo’self” philosophy than we previously thought, because China’s Singles’ Day just shattered retail records everywhere. Again.
First dreamed up by Chinese students back in 1993 as an occasion to splurge on themselves (rather than waiting for someone else to do so), the day didn’t really take off until 2009, when e-commerce giant Alibaba positioned it as an official retail holiday. Now, it takes place annually on November 11 and features sales and promotions (spearheaded by Alibaba) as a counterpart to the couple-y notion of Valentine’s Day.
And, judging by the numbers from Tuesday, everyone went all out. BBC News reports that by the end of the day, Alibaba had recorded about $9.3 billion in sales and shipped 278 million orders, far exceeding last year’s $5.75 billion and making it the world’s biggest online sales day. The holiday's taking off globally, as well, with brands like The North Face, Muji, and Desigual getting in on the action.
Even crazier, Singles' Day retail sales are expected to grow 25% each year — meaning the rest of the world is bound to cash in. Is independent-minded self-indulgence the next big thing in shopping? Discuss in the comments, if you can take a break from clicking "buy." (BBC News)