How Teresa Cheung became a live-stream shopping star in China: the Hong Kong actress and ex-wife of singer Kenny Bee is best known today for her sell-out e-commerce – and in-depth fashion know-how
- Cheung’s unique, discerning insights into luxury fashion – like her analysis on Prada’s style history – have earned her a substantial following on Xiaohongshu, where she hosts e-commerce live-streams
- You might best know Cheung for her acting career or scandals with her ex, but she was also a fashion columnist and muse to novelist Yi Shu, who praised her style and based a character on her
“One can skip meals, but one cannot stop buying clothes” – questionable it may be, but the phrase is one of Teresa Cheung’s most well-known maxims.
Once a luminary in Hong Kong’s social scene during the 90s, Cheung has ingeniously found a new role within mainland China’s burgeoning live-streaming arena. With 1.2 million followers on the social media platform Xiaohongshu, Cheung has become a trusted voice, dispensing her insights on fashion and beauty.
On May 22, she unveiled her first e-commerce live-stream experience on Xiaohongshu. The marathon event, which spanned nearly six hours, showcased close to 200 products.
According to official data from Xiaohongshu, the event’s Gross Merchandise Volume (GMV) surpassed 50 million yuan (almost US$7 million), attracting over a million viewers and selling out 57 products.
Her appeal to netizens appears to stem not from the affordability or discounts of the products she shows off, but rather from her serene demeanour and meticulous attention to detail when explaining the unique features of each product.
For instance, while introducing an eyeshadow palette, she intriguingly correlated the colours with romantic elements from Renaissance art works, such as a fairy’s hair, oranges in a tree, a flowing gown and a fluttering veil, expressing herself earnestly and gently.
Who is Teresa Cheung?
