What happened
After three months of silence, celebrity anchor Li Jiaqi, aka the Lipstick King, has returned. The highly anticipated reality show All Girls’ Offer 2 — the first bargaining TV program in China to focus on Double 11 offers — launched last year is also back. The series showcased Li battling with brand managers to get the best discounts and products for customers.
Aired on October 9, the first episode has, so far, garnered 3.62 million views on the video-sharing site Bilibili. This time, the list of labels making an appearance has also grown. In addition to the big players of the first season returning (Sisley, Guerlain, and Shiseido), domestic beauty lines like Proya and Inoherb will also be featured. In Li’s words, “the idea is to empower local names.” Although cosmetics continue to be the main protagonists, the product categories have also expanded to include home electronics and car seats from the likes of Panasonic and Savile 猫头鹰.
The Jing Take
This June, Li put a halt to his livestreaming for unknown reasons and only returned to screens in September. But this has given no signs of having dampened consumers' enthusiasm. On the first night of his comeback, over 60 million fans and shoppers gathered at his live broadcast room. This demonstrates how influential the mega KOL continues to be. Netizens’ reactions to the show have been overwhelmingly positive. Weibo user @Beiersworld, for one, shared: “Just watched the show and added so many items to my Double 11 shopping cart.”
Today, the reality TV format is beloved by young locals. According to Yunhe data, in the third quarter of this year, variety shows had a playback volume of 8.6 billion on the Chinese net. Clearly, All Girls Offer 2 presents a lucrative marketing vehicle for businesses to fully maximize their exposure among Gen Z — especially if a clip goes viral. Given the star anchor’s solid reputation and loyal following, appearing on his broadcast is often the pièce de résistance for brands doing battle during Double 11. By televising the preparatory work for the shopping bonanza, houses not only deepen consumers’ memory of their offerings among the vast ocean of commodities but also build greater trust and educate shoppers on their products and company culture.
The Jing Take reports on a piece of the leading news and presents our editorial team’s analysis of the key implications for the luxury industry. In the recurring column, we analyze everything from product drops and mergers to heated debate sprouting on Chinese social media.