L’Oréal, Proya race with algorithms in China’s AI-powered Double 11

What happened China’s 2025 Double 11 (Singles’ Day) shopping marathon began long before November 11. This year, the race to win consumers’ attention started as early as October, when Tmall, JD.com, and Douyin all launched staggered pre-sale waves that stretched the festival into a month-long campaign. But what used to be a one-day retail frenzy has now matured into a marathon of precision — powered by AI, loyalty ecosystems, and smarter shoppers. Tmall cemented its dominance as beauty’s primary arena, capturing 61% of total category sales across major platforms, according to JQ Data. Within the first hour of sales, over 80 beauty brands surpassed 100 million RMB ($13.8 million) in turnover, including Estée Lauder, Lancôme, L’Oréal Paris, Proya, and SkinCeuticals. Domestic leader Proya once again took the top spot on Tmall’s four-hour leaderboard, outpacing international heavyweights — underscoring how far homegrown innovation has come in competing on equal footing. Science-backed skincare wins Double 11 beauty race The “scientific skincare” track emerged as the biggest breakout. Consumers increasingly sought multi-functional, dermatologist-backed formulations, with La Roche-Posay’s B5 Pro Mask and Winona’s Special Care Cream both topping 100 million RMB ($13.8 million) in sales within the first pre-sale hour. Olay’s Super Red Jar surpassed that same mark within two hours. Ingredient transparency, efficacy, and hybrid formulas — such as “brightening plus anti-sensitivity” or “hydration plus anti-wrinkle” — defined this year’s bestsellers. E-tailers embed AI to boost purchase rates Behind the scenes, AI quietly became the real protagonist. For the first time, Tmall fully integrated generative AI across its retail operations, boosting computing power 40-fold and extending behavioral tracking from six months to 10 years. The platform said this improved recommendation precision and raised purchase efficiency by 25%. JD.com leaned on “AI-guided shopping” and ultra-fast logistics, while Douyin introduced “chat-to-shop” features through ByteDance’s Doubao model — making this the first truly AI-driven Double 11. The Jing Take: Simplified rules and smarter shoppers “This year, brands have focused on simplification and efficiency,” says Jacob Cooke, co-founder and CEO of WPIC Marketing + Technologies. “Rather than blanket discounts, they leaned on precise targeting through AI tools, loyalty programs like 88VIP, and personalized marketing to drive conversion.” Consumers, too, showed a more deliberate mindset. A new report from Qingyan Intelligence found that nearly 60% of shoppers drew up purchase lists in advance, while more than 90% compared prices across platforms. Only a third made immediate purchases during livestreams — a sign that livestreaming now serves more as a research and engagement channel than an impulse driver. “Consumers are buying smarter, not necessarily cheaper,” Cooke adds. “They’re responding to value, quality, and brand trust more than to pure discounting. We’ve seen strong demand across ‘feel-good’ categories — beauty, wellness, outdoor, and home.” While major platforms kept overall GMV under wraps, data points indicate steady growth. JD.com reported a 40% rise in active buyers and nearly 60 percent increase in orders. Meituan’s Flash Sale initiative saw brand flagship store sales climb 400 percent, while Xiaohongshu’s new “Grass to Cart” (种草直达) function - which converts user recommendations directly into shoppable links that take consumers to checkout pages - drove over 100 products past 10 million RMB ($1.4 million) in sales across multiple e-commerce sites. C-beauty brands top beauty charts Domestic beauty continued to gain ground. Proya’s victory on Tmall, coupled with local players like Winona climbing Douyin’s top 20 beauty charts, confirmed the structural shift reshaping China’s beauty landscape. Homegrown brands are no longer “affordable alternatives” but credible innovators with R&D depth, agile storytelling, and sophisticated channel management. Singles’ Day evolves from discount marathon to brand building Double 11 in 2025 marked a turning point — from chaotic discount carnival to disciplined, data-driven competition. “AI-powered recommendations, loyalty incentives, and livestreaming remain the biggest growth engines," says Cooke. “Coupons and instant deals continue to work but are increasingly integrated into personalized user journeys rather than mass promotion.” This signals a more sustainable, intelligence-led retail model. The festival has evolved into a prolonged engagement cycle — not just a sales day, but an always-on platform for consumer insight, content commerce, and brand storytelling. “Shopping festivals like 11.11 remain essential but no longer sufficient,” Cooke adds. “The most successful brands treat Singles’ Day as a launchpad for long-term relationships, not a one-off sales event.” Success is no longer measured in GMV alone. The real winners of this year’s marathon were the brands that combined precision with authenticity — those that used data to understand consumers, technology to reach them, and trust to keep them. 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.

Smarter shoppers, sharper tools: Beauty’s AI era arrives at Double 11

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Smarter shoppers, sharper tools: Beauty’s AI era arrives at Double 11