That's quite a nice stage tomorrow ... www.virke.no/konferanser/...

In my keynote at the Hovedorganisasjonen Virke Arena conference on 18/9, I will share how Temu keeps changing its business models and the impact of the cancellation of the import tax exemption on Temu in the US. There is a lot to learn from this for us in Europe. See you in Lillestrøm, Norway.

In this 2nd part of our investigation into Tencent’s e-commerce revival, we explain Tencent’s vision for WeChat e-commerce and take a closer look at the way WeChat’s ecosystem facilitates e-commerce. techbuzzchina.substack.com/p/tencents-e...

Bij China denk je misschien niet direct aan corporate social responsability, maar Valérie Hoeks weet wel beter. www.vnc-china.nl/events/china...

In a new Tech Buzz China report, I evaluate TikTok Shop’s progress. ▶️ How TikTok Shop is changing its e-commerce model and how live commerce is developing. ▶️ Details about the layoffs and management changes at TikTok Shop US. ▶️ The outlook and targets for TikTok Shop. ▶️ And much more ...

▶️ Why it's not the cancellation of the de minimis in the US that caused Temu's sales to collapse. ▶️ Why we should look at what TikTok Shop did in elsewhere to manage our expectations. ▶️ Why a war broke out among food delivery/instant retail companies. Full keynote: mediathek.k5.de/video/the-bi...

Make sure you talk to some of the previous editors before signing anything ...

Mid-December, WeChat launched a new ‘Send Gifts’ functionality. It was enthusiastically received since it echoed WeChat’s digitisation of the ‘hong bao’ (red envelopes) during Spring Festival in 2014. Read all about it in our new Tech Buzz China report. techbuzzchina.substack.com/p/tencents-e...

HOW JD HYPES ITS TAKEAWAY BUSINESS AND HURTS COFFEE STORES Since the launch of its takeaway business, JD has been constantly releasing stunning numbers that I found hard to believe. Zouma Finance released an interesting article that sheds light on the numbers. Read more: substack.com/@techbuzzchi...

Last month, I delivered a 100-minute session at a Philips event in Eindhoven. Compared to China, Philips and many Western brands still hold competitive advantages in branding, service, quality, and innovation. But would that last? Watch the video here: www.linkedin.com/posts/edsand...

Video: Four Little Dragons Going Overseas www.chinatalk.nl/video-four-l...

FOUR LITTLE DRAGONS GOING OVERSEAS A video of my keynote at Fashion Talks 2025 in Antwerp, Belgium, explaining the wave of Chinese webshops that have arrived in the past years. youtu.be/zc_7D75IAVA?...

Two Chinese coffee store brands, Luckin and Cotti, have gone abroad. Who are these brands and how did they change how Starbucks is doing business in China? This is a slidecast of a presentation I gave during the K5 - Future Retail Xpedition study tour to China in October 2024. youtu.be/iIYDAKCyAls

I just finished reading a 16,000+ word account of a Chinese-born former R&D team manager’s 2.5 years at TikTok Shop US. It sheds some interesting insights into the issues at Chinese Tech companies in the US, in general, and TikTok Shop US specifically. Summary: substack.com/@techbuzzchi...

Predictions on the share of China's e-commerce in total retail sales: Jack Ma (Alibaba founder) - 2013 - "will exceed 50% by 2022" e-marketer - 2021 - "58.1% in 2024" e-marketer - 2022 - "48.9% by 2024" Joe Tsai (Alibaba chairman) - 2024 - "will exceed 40% in the next 5 years" Reality check:

FOR ALIBABA’S HEMA (FRESHIPPO) X DOES NOT MARK THE SPOT (PART 2) Just three months ago, I wrote about how Hema was closing down some of its Hema X membership stores, reducing the total from 10 to 5. Now, two more stores in Shanghai and Beijing are closing June 30th. www.linkedin.com/posts/edsand...

The days in which a train ride in first class gave you a quiet experience in which you could do some work are clearly over in The Netherlands. I've experienced a long CRM system training and a father lecturing his son about his gaming addiction today. 🤔

WILL THE CHINESE DITCH QR CODE PAYMENTS? QR codes have their limitations, especially for the elderly, and they could get damaged or be replaced by criminals. Ant Group, the Alibaba spin-off and company behind Alipay, now wants to change that with Alipay Touch. substack.com/@techbuzzchi...

The 90-day tariff war truce is a good moment to take stock of where we are. In this new Temu Watch update, we examine the phases of the tariff war, both before and after May 12th, the impact of various policies, and how Temu has adjusted its strategies. techbuzzchina.substack.com/p/temu-watch...

Here's what I will be sharing at the K5 Conference in Berlin on June 24th. www.k5.de

ONPOPULAIRE OPINIE? Ik werd gisteren door Wilke Wittebrood van Change Inc. / MT Sprout geïnterviewd over de brandbrief van de mode- en textielbedrijven m.b.t. Chinese platforms als Shein en Temu ... www.linkedin.com/posts/edsand...

WHAT TWO CHARTS REVEAL ABOUT CHINA'S INSTANT RETAIL Recently, Zouma Finance published its analysis on the instant retail market. I combined all of their data in the line chart below. I also translated their pie chart of the market shares. A few things that stand out. substack.com/@techbuzzchi...

ALIBABA’S XIANYU (IDLE FISH) SWIMS A DIFFERENT COURSE Our latest report provides a detailed look at Alibaba's second-hand e-commerce platform, Xianyu: the history, user growth and demographics, business model evolution, and strategic shift within Alibaba. techbuzzchina.substack.com/p/alibabas-x...

Team Het Verre Oosten wint VNC China Pub Quiz www.blogaap.nl/2-3593_Team-...

For those who are playing the VNC China Pub Quiz with @blogaap.bsky.social and me on Monday, here's another hint.

NO, CANCELLATION OF DE MINIMIS WOULD NOT KILL TEMU AND SHEIN But the tariffs will, if they remain unchanged. For a better understanding, I have decided to pull the Temu Watch #7 report on Tech Buzz China from behind our regular paywall for at least a week. techbuzzchina.substack.com/p/temu-watch...

WHAT IS JD'S FOOD DELIVERY ALL ABOUT? There's a lot of talk (and PR) about the 'new' food delivery business of JD in China. Many people are misinterpreting this new strategic move. I wrote a two-part report on the topic for Tech Buzz China. Some of the key takeaways. substack.com/@techbuzzchi...

Our new Tech Buzz China report on Xiaohongshu examines whether Rednote and XHS are separate apps, evaluates the impact of TikTok Refugees and plans for internationalisation and cross-border e-commerce. Plus updates on XHS's 2024 results and plans for 2025. techbuzzchina.substack.com/p/xiaohongsh...

Kwisliefhebbers opgelet: 19 mei de eerste VNC China Pubquiz in Den Bosch. Doe mee als team of individu en schrijf je nu in. www.vnc-china.nl/events/vnc-c...

Een ander uiterste is dat, toen ik een paar jaar geleden een VOD rekening wilde openen, ik bij Rabo door zoveel hoepeltjes moest springen. Zo werd ik als tour operator een half uur geïnterviewed over 'transacties met China'. Heb uiteindelijk bedankt en ben naar de concurrent gegaan.

Save the date of schrijf je direct in als team of individu: de VNC China Pubquiz op 19 mei in Den Bosch. www.vnc-china.nl/events/vnc-c...

Even bellen vanuit Beijing om het tweede uitstel van de verkoop/ban van TikTok uit te leggen in het NOS nieuws deze morgen ... www.linkedin.com/posts/edsand...

Ik leg het over 75 dagen nog eens uit.

Even vanuit Shanghai inbelllen om uit te leggen waarom Trump TikTok wil redden. 😉 www.nu.nl/315761/video...

Something for the weekend. Listen to me sharing some insights from my recent Tech Buzz China reports on the performance of TikTok Shop in the US in the Let's Talk Marketplace podcast with Valerie and Ingrid. www.chinatalk.nl/podcast-lets...

Bye bye Xi'an. See you again in October. www.linkedin.com/posts/edsand...

At Tech Buzz China we go deep! ;-)

Subscribe on Apple or Spotify or listen to the full episode here: zhanstation.com?p=781

When I arrived in Xi'an in 2011, there were no metro lines. Now, it has 12 metro lines, a total length of 427.9 km (266 mi) and 270 stations. Read my story about how that changes life here: www.linkedin.com/posts/edsand...

Some eyebrows must have been raised when one of China’s earliest e-commerce companies, JD, announced its expansion into the food delivery market. We have analysed this move. Why is JD doing this, and will it have a chance of success? techbuzzchina.substack.com/p/go-fetch-j...

INSTANT RETAIL: THE 1 STORE + N FRONT-END WAREHOUSES Alibaba's Hema (Freshippo) has launched a '1 store + n front-end warehouses' model in China's Hebei province. This is a model that has been used by Walmart's Sam's Club in the Chinese market. Read more: substack.com/@techbuzzchi...

THE DEATH OF 'REFUND ONLY' Chinese e-commerce companies are largely cancelling or rolling back their 'refund only' return policies. And that's a good thing ... substack.com/@techbuzzchi...

WHO WILL BE THE WINNER? TEMU, SHEIN OR TIKTOKSHOP? On the Shanghai Zhan podcast, Bryce Whitwam asked me this question. This was my answer ...

YUP, JOYBUY = OCHAMA Not only does the Joybuy site resemble Ochama in many ways (the layout, the pastel colours), it even sells 'ochama' branded goods. Clearly, JD is using part of Ochama's private label assortment for Joybuy. substack.com/@techbuzzchi...

MEITUAN’S INTERNATIONALISATION OF FOOD AND GROCERY DELIVERY Wang Xing, the CEO of Meituan, held a strategy meeting with his top managers and proposed three focus areas for growth: grocery retail, technology and internationalisation. Let's unpack that last one ... substack.com/@techbuzzchi...

Joybuy, JD.com's attempt at both the overseas B2C and B2B market, quietly reincarnated in the UK. This new (sixth?) incarnation is again a B2C website that shares many similarities with Ochama, another B2C platform by JD in the European market. Read more: substack.com/@techbuzzchi...

WHY PINDUODUO'S TEMU IS HERE TO STAY I have been following Temu's parent company, Pinduoduo, for many years and have gained an essential insight. The whole organisation is run like a military operation. substack.com/@techbuzzchi...

TEMU WATCH #7 - WILL TARIFFS KILL TEMU? In this new Tech Buzz China Temu Watch we analysed several expert interviews that discussed the impact of the tariffs on cross-border e-commerce from China and Temu specifically. techbuzzchina.substack.com/p/temu-watch...

FOR ALIBABA’S HEMA (FRESHIPPO), X DOES NOT MARK THE SPOT A few days ago, Hema announced it would close 3 out of 5 Hema X stores in Shanghai. substack.com/@techbuzzchi...

THE ALIBABA-FICATION OF GLOBALISATION Most of us are focused on the Chinese B2C webshops from China, but a different development is taking shape. substack.com/@techbuzzchi...