The 11.11 Sale Is Close At Hand, But How Did It Come About?

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are two days in the year when western merchants slash prices like they are going out of business. The sales events attract many shoppers who are willing to spend their money on stuff that they probably don’t need. The equivalent of this, especially in China, is Singles’ Day.

Held annually on the 11th of November (11.11), it’s the Chinese version of Black Friday, which sees everything from baby diapers, cosmetics to electronic gadgets being sold at marked down prices. Last year alone, it accounted for $65 billion of sales on China’s e-commerce platforms Alibaba and JD.com.

The origin of Singles’ Day can be traced back to the 1990s with students in the Chinese city of Nanjing. The number “1” resembles a “bare stick” which is Chinese internet slang for a single man who doesn’t marry. The “1111″ represent the four single men from Nanjing University who wanted to break away from the monotony of being single.

They decided that the 11th of November would be a day of celebration in honor of being single. The popularity of the idea grew throughout the university, then spread into Chinese society. It eventually became associated with the mega sales event known as 11.11, which sees merchants slash prices on their goods, similar to what’s practiced on Black Friday.

Credit: My News Desk

The 11.11 sale practice has spilled over into other Asian countries including our home, Malaysia. The event sees e-commerce sites like Lazada and Shopee’s merchants offer products with heavily discounted prices. Many people wait all year for this particular sale, which is why it accounts for annual record-busting revenue for both outlets.

DB Schenker, part of Deutsche Bahn AG’s global transport and logistics division moved 2.5 million orders in China during the 11.11 sale. It took 5 days for its staff of 3,000 employees to work around the clock in order ship all the orders out to customers. It’s probably one of the busiest times of the year for logistics companies.

In fact, DB Schenker’s staff in China begin preparations six months prior to the actual event. It entails finding a logistics solution based on customers’ volume forecasts, making simulations to ensure that all systems will work as they should as well as organizing workplaces and renting enough trucks to fulfill orders.

It may be an incredibly taxing day for logistics companies, but 11.11 is a day many of us look forward to because of the incredible deals on offer.