What is Singles Day?

While Single’s Day is the largest retail holiday in the world, since its origination in China, Single’s Day has been growing in popularity, being incorporated into marketing calendars more widely throughout the world. Key retailers in the U.S. are increasingly participating in the promotional nature of the holiday, and based on our research the number of participating brands and retailers is set to grow.

Let’s take it back a bit, shall we?

The tradition of Singles’ Day started as an unofficial holiday celebrated by unmarried people in China in the early 90’s as a sort of “Anti-Valentines Day”. Originally called Bachelors Day and only celebrated by Men, the holiday has since expanded and become the largest online shopping day in the world. Falling each year on 11/11, there has been a growing number of participating countries- with retailers and brands taking note.

So what is the true upside to this holiday for brands and retailers?

For scale, E-Commerce giant Alibaba’s GMV during Singles Day 2021 was $84.5 Billion USD – almost 7x the global GMV for Amazon Prime Day.

While introduction in the U.S has taken some time, there has been a 51% increase in search volume for Singles’ Day over the last 7 years. Additionally, in the U.S, Americans spent $2.7B on the holiday in 2019, a 38% increase YOY (according to Adobe Analytics.)

This year, key players in America like ShopStyle promoted 11 Must-Shop Singles’ Day Sales, featuring discounts from major brand players like Nike, Macy’s and Saks Fifth Avenue- signaling a more popular adoption of this retail holiday, and a growing awareness.

I know what you are probably thinking – how do I incorporate Single’s Day into my 2023 Marketing Calendar? Take a look below for some tips.

• Interest in Singles’ Day gains momentum around 2 weeks before the event, with a 40% increase in search volume around the words “discount” and “sale” so be sure to educate your customers and tease that a sale will be taking place.
• Craft a compelling offer; while this is what we’re always striving for as marketers, find a way to incorporate the essence of the holiday into your promotional offer. If offering a straightforward percentage discount is not the approach, introducing a product bundle marked down to $111 might be interesting!
• Lastly, ground your approach in authenticity and understanding. Since this retail holiday didn’t originate in the U.S be sure you understand the broader positioning and history of the holiday before joining the conversation.

How will the wider inclusion of this retail holiday impact the way we approach Black Friday /Cyber Monday? Will emerging brands be able to play meaningfully in this holiday or will it be left to the giants? Will continued adoption by big players require the broader marketplace to participate? Only time will tell!