Chinese trends in Europe: here are the ones you shouldn’t miss

The Western e-commerce and online shopping market is increasingly influenced by Chinese trends.

But can we draw inspiration from what is happening in China and transfer the trends from the Asian country to our markets?

The answer is definitely yes. Some inspiration from the top Chinese trends could indeed be adapted to European markets, allowing Amazon sellers to gain important competitive added value.

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For convenience, we have divided this guide to Chinese trends in Europe into two parts.

In the first part, we will see how Chinese online sellers are boosting their sales. We will also look at the trends that are shaping their strategies.

In the second part, we will examine which product categories are gaining the most traction in Chinese e-commerce. Among them, we’ll highlight the products that could also become popular in our markets.

Let’s begin!

Chinese Online Sales Strategies: How to Break Into the Market

As we mentioned earlier, the first part of this guide is dedicated to analyzing the main Chinese online sales strategies.

Let’s go through them one by one and see if they could work for us as well.

Live streaming e-commerce

Live streaming e-commerce is one of the biggest current trends. Launched in 2016 by Alibaba on its online sales portals Taobao Live and Tmall, it has captured a 10% market share in just a few years. And it’s continuing to grow at an impressive rate!

Of course, this isn’t entirely new.

Those with a few more years behind them will remember the explosion of telemarketing in commercial TV channels in the 1990s. A host would present and carefully explain products live within a TV set. Customers, in turn, could

• connect to the broadcast.
• watch the show.
• if interested in one or more products being presented, call to place an order.

Well, with new technologies, the same sales approach has been transferred to modern digital platforms.

However, the elements remain more or less the same. We still find:

• a presenter (now a streamer)
• a show
• the ability to interact
• a sense of urgency induced
• and the consequent impulse to buy.

This phenomenon, originally from China, has spread globally and is also making an impact in Europe. It can easily be integrated with Amazon, considering that the live streamer could share direct links to the product pages on the marketplace, rather than selling the products directly through other channels.

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Social Commerce

Among the Chinese trends expanding in Europe is certainly social commerce, a trend driven by WeChat, an instant messaging app developed by Tencent that sits between a social network and social e-commerce.

This multitasking tool allows companies to sell and engage consumers on a single platform, which is widespread in China.

For companies, WeChat indeed offers some services that are hard to overlook. The WeChat Store, in particular, is a fully mobile-optimized website designed to work on this platform and can be accessed from the company’s account menu. Users who follow the brand can access the site, make purchases, and pay using WeChat Pay.

There are also mini-programs, apps that allow companies to send promotional messages directly to individual users and offer services such as e-commerce, couponing, and task management.

Shopping Gamification

Another typical trend in the Chinese e-commerce market is gamification, which involves introducing game elements into the online shopping experience to increase customer engagement.

Gamification is the use of typical game mechanics in non-gaming contexts such as e-commerce. The goal is clearly to stimulate the interest of the target audience, engage them more deeply, and encourage them to take specific actions, such as purchasing a product or service.

There is a lot to be said about why gamification is one of the most important trends for improving profitability.

In short, we can say that gamification leverages people’s natural competitiveness. Consumers are sensitive to motivations like winning a prize or recognition. And what better way to stimulate these impulses than with this strategy?

By tapping into these primary instincts, gamification yields significant benefits for the seller. Among many:

– Increased time spent in the store and attracting a larger number of customers;
– Collection of relevant insights, such as demographic information and purchasing preferences;
– Greater satisfaction among players, leading to more positive associations in buyers’ minds;
– Brand loyalty by offering rewards such as discounts, coupons, and other benefits;
– Increased number of customer comments and reviews.

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Cross-border Marketplace

Speaking of Chinese trends that have inspired various strategic approaches in Europe, we see the boom in cross-border marketplaces. Platforms like AliExpress are making it easier for European consumers to access Chinese products.

This trend is less vigorous for highly regulated products, many of which also involve costly customs duties, and for sectors that are logistically challenging, such as plant engineering or furniture.

However, for other products, the benefits of cross-border trade have long been known to Italian consumers, who increasingly use apps where goods from Asia are abundant.

The platforms leading this trend are quite numerous. Let’s try to summarize their characteristics, pros, and cons.

Platform	Pros	Cons
Tmall Global Division of Alibaba, one of the most popular due to its wide range of quality products and strict vendor selection.	Wide user base Good reputation Solid logistics support	High entry costs High commissions Strict requirements for sellers
JD Worldwide Cross-border e-commerce platform of JD.com, ideal for brands that want to offer a fast shopping experience to consumers.	Good logistical structure Wide customer network Support for marketing operations	High competition Significant investment required in marketing
Kaola Acquired by Alibaba in 2019, it is now one of the main cross-border e-commerce platforms in China, known for quality and imported products.	Focus on imported products High-quality standards Good reputation	High operational costs
WeChat A well-structured platform, boasting over a billion users and great flexibility of use.	Ubiquitous in every household High flexibility	High competition Need for constant investments

AI-based Personalization

The use of artificial intelligence algorithms to offer highly personalized product recommendations has long been common in both our market and in China. In China, e-commerce platforms are placing a lot of emphasis on enhancing the user experience in this way.

While AI-driven personalization is important in our markets, it may be even more so in China, where consumers are often impulsive buyers due to simple platform browsing, rather than an expressed desire to purchase. Thus, it becomes crucial for marketplaces and sellers to capture the preferences of potential customers and provide them with useful content to stimulate sales.

Furthermore, the collection of information by Chinese consumers increasingly happens through the identification and endorsement of a Key Opinion Leader (KOL), who is considered a trusted and reliable person. Unlike European consumers, Chinese consumers tend to rely more on the experience of other customers, family, and friends, rather than trusting the information presented on the brand’s website.

A lot of importance is also given to the retention phase, which allows sellers to create a sense of loyalty by supporting customers with any post-purchase needs. In this context, artificial intelligence plays a vital role in anticipating and accommodating the needs of consumers, who tend to be particularly demanding and accustomed to efficient customer service. It’s no coincidence that Chinese e-commerce and social commerce platforms offer real-time customer service with 24/7 assistance.

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Group Shopping

Another trend popular in China, which is also gaining traction in our markets, is collective buying models to obtain discounts. An example is provided by those used by Pinduoduo. More generally, it should be noted that in China, the shopping experience is considered a collective journey. As demonstrated by the boom in social commerce, it’s not necessarily an individual experience.

In the case of group shopping, or social shopping, it refers to the shopping experience where users are encouraged to involve others in shopping communities and shared shopping experiences to multiply the benefits for all parties involved.

From the seller’s perspective, it allows for greater profits through the sharing of information provided by their users and the engagement of their customers’ contacts. For customers, the main benefits come from the fact that incentives and advantages, such as discounts, are often offered for completing shopping transactions.

Consumer Trends in China: The Most Popular Products

Now that we’ve clarified the main sales strategies in China and the most important e-commerce trends, we can delve into consumer trends and identify some products and categories that are particularly popular and could set useful trends in our markets as well.

To discover these, we drew inspiration from a report published by a major player in the Chinese market, Alibaba. Let’s take a look together at the categories to keep an eye on and identify three trending products for each.

Health and Lifestyle

We start with the area of health and wellness products. These are two huge priorities for the general population and, increasingly, for Chinese buyers.

Supplements	Dietary supplements like mushroom coffee are seeing a good increase in search volume. Many of these products might not be importable to Italy due to strict regulations in this category. However, it’s always worth keeping an eye on such product trends.
Purifiers	Air purifiers saw a boom in Italy during the pandemic. However, in China, their use is largely unrelated to health emergencies. With major concerns about air quality in Asian cities, air purifiers have established themselves as a strong and consolidated consumer trend for improving indoor air.
Reusable Bottles	Environmental concerns and the need to reduce our environmental impact are driving the spread of more eco-friendly, reusable products. Among these are reusable bottles.

Fashion

Fashion is another major trend in the Chinese market, especially when geared towards meeting specific and rapidly growing needs. A particularly dynamic example is the demand for outdoor lifestyle products.

Sportswear	The growing interest in outdoor activities is driving greater demand for sportswear.
Fashion Accessories	Scarves, hats, and other fashion accessories are an excellent way to personalize an outfit at often very competitive prices.
Shapewear	Shapewear has experienced a strong increase in sales in China in recent years. The trend seems to have solidified, benefiting brands in this sector.

Personal Care

By 2026, Alibaba projects that the personal care and beauty products industry will grow by 50% to reach $131 billion in revenue. Some products will obviously benefit more from this development than others.

Hair Extensions	Extensions and accessories that alter hairstyles are one of the trends in the Chinese market. While less popular in our markets, this fashion trend could carve out a notable niche worth targeting.
Hair Oils	Nourishing hair and scalp is a constant concern in Chinese beauty standards. These products are unisex but can easily be tailored to specific target groups.
Manicure Products	Increasing attention to the beauty of hands and nails has driven the growth of sales in this category.

Food

Even though in China—just like in Italy—takeout, home delivery, and fast food are well-established realities, more and more people are rediscovering the joy of preparing and enjoying meals at home.

Air Fryers	While certainly not new to the market, air fryers seem to have a solid market to capitalize on.
Portable Blenders	Portable blenders offer easy, convenient, and quick access to creating new and healthy recipes. Juices, smoothies, and other beverages can be made on the go in just a few moments.
Organizers	Stackable shelves, pantry accessories, and other products for drawers and shelves are becoming a staple in the purchasing preferences of Chinese families, who are increasingly focused on efficient food organization.

Home

Home goods continue to see strong growth in China. Alibaba predicts that the market will grow by nearly 5% annually through at least 2026.

Lamps	Functional and stylish, bedside lamps are one of the most popular home products.
Blackout Curtains	Blackout curtains are experiencing a notable increase in sales in China and worldwide. Available in many variations, they can improve comfort at home by reducing the need for air conditioning, thanks to their ability to block external heat sources.
Decorative Doormats	Elegant or playful, with personalized messages or quotes, decorative doormats are another great idea for adding a unique touch to your home.

Children’s Products

With the average age of pregnant women continuing to rise, leading to better financial stability for parents compared to younger couples, there’s been an increase in spending on children’s products.

Baby monitors	Essential for better child safety, baby monitors allow parents to keep an eye on their children from a distance. Models with advanced features such as two-way communication, night vision, and dynamic angles are the most in demand.
Automatic Cradles	Automatic cradles, equipped with a rocking motion that mimics the manual movement of parents, are also becoming more popular, helping babies relax.
Toys	Of course, the toy market continues to boom, making it a cornerstone of global e-commerce!

Pet Products

In this overview of trending products, we cannot overlook pet products—another staple in e-commerce sales!

Pet Carriers	With dogs and cats increasingly involved in their owners’ outdoor activities, pet carriers have become an essential accessory.
Litter Boxes and Pet Beds	At home, cat litter boxes and dog beds are indispensable products!
Harnesses	More comfortable and secure than regular collars, harnesses are available in a wide variety of trendy designs.

Office

With remote work becoming a widespread habit for many companies, more employees are setting up home offices and dedicated workspaces.

Microphones	Sales of microphones for podcasts and calls skyrocketed during the pandemic and continue to see solid growth.
Smart Plugs	Smart plugs allow you to remotely control connected devices, making your office smarter.
Mouse Pads	Although laptops come with built-in mice, traditional mice are still considered the preferred solution. Hence, the significant growth in mouse pad sales, even for entire workstations.

The Western e-commerce market is undergoing a significant transformation, driven by the adoption of trends from China. Strategies that have dominated the digital landscape in the Asian country, such as live streaming e-commerce, social commerce, and gamification, have proven highly effective in attracting consumers and present concrete opportunities for European sellers to stand out on platforms like Amazon.

In summary, adapting Chinese e-commerce trends to the European market is not only feasible but highly recommended for those seeking a competitive advantage in an increasingly digital and globalized context. The strategies and products that are succeeding in China may very well shape the future of e-commerce in Europe.