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Uniqlo chases China’s shoppers on TikTok sibling Douyin, as e-commerce race against Alibaba heats up

  • The Japanese clothing retailer runs three official accounts on Douyin to promote its goods via live streams and short videos
  • The move shows the challenge faced by established e-commerce players, which are finding it harder to retain users in a slowing economy

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Giant down coats hang at the booth of Uniqlo during the China International Import Expo in Shanghai in November 2020. Photo: Xinhua
Tracy Qu
Japanese clothing brand Uniqlo has turned to TikTok’s sibling app Douyin to reach more Chinese consumers amid sagging demand, as Alibaba Group Holding and other established e-commerce players face rising competition in retaining customers.
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The apparel retailer, which has three official Douyin accounts promoting its products, recently ran a series of live-streamed shows on ByteDance’s Chinese short-video platform, which allows users to directly buy Uniqlo merchandise through the app. It also frequently posts short videos promoting its clothes and giving viewers styling advice.
The move shows the new challenge faced by Alibaba, which has long been a preferred destination for fashion shoppers in China. Uniqlo debuted its online shopping services in China in April 2009 on the Taobao e-commerce platform, which is owned by Alibaba, along with the South China Morning Post.
Hidden camera was found in Uniqlo's fitting room

Fast Retailing, which owns Uniqlo and several other brands, was one of the top sellers on Alibaba’s Tmall in the first half of this year, generating a net gross merchandise value of about 2.2 billion yuan (US$317 million), according to research firm YipitData.

However, China is struggling under a slowing economy as it grapples with the nation’s worst Covid-19 outbreak since the spring of 2020. Twenty-nine out of 31 Chinese provinces have reported local cases since September, according to a government press conference last week, with lockdowns being imposed in dozens of cities.

Total retail sales in July rose 2.7 per cent in July, down from 3.1 per cent in June and well below the expected 5.3 per cent.

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Uniqlo, one of the most recognised clothings brands in China, reported large revenue and profit declines in the Greater China region in the quarter ended May 31, citing the adverse impact of travel restrictions put in place to contain Covid-19 infections.

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