Haitao Shopping - China - February 2017
Overview
 
What you need to know
China’s Haitao market has grown very rapidly, and still has a lot of room for growth in the future. However, its share of total online retail in China is reaching a peak, because more foreign brands are already now established within the China market, selling either through domestic physical stores, or domestic online shopping websites.

This situation means that foreign brands must now work harder to differentiate within the market to grab consumer interest and offer a more memorable, exciting experience. Innovations in marketing are already being seen in use of online media and gaming within China. As more Chinese people travel abroad, engaging with them in source countries is also becoming both more possible and important.

Customer service and greater convenience are also becoming more important to increasingly discerning Chinese consumers. This is an area where foreign brands and retailers have to catch up with their domestic competitors.

Covered in this report
This Report covers the market for cross-border online retail shopping (known as “Haitao” [海淘], in Chinese) to Chinese citizens.

Definitions
For the purpose of this Report, the ‘Haitao’ market includes buying imported products from online shopping websites, including both domestic and overseas shopping websites. It excludes purchasing imported products from domestic or foreign physical stores, or from duty-free channels while travelling.

However, the consumer survey data in this Report does include coverage of purchasing of foreign, imported products from duty-free outlets (both within China and overseas), and in-store shopping within Mainland China and overseas, for comparison.

Excluded
The Report excludes ‘daigou’ (literally translated as ‘representative buying’) purchases, these being purchases made by Chinese nationals living or visiting overseas to send back to China, either for consumption by friends or relatives or to sell on.