From Singles’ Day to Shopping Carnival: The Chinese Miracle of Double Eleven
Today is November 11, 2025,
and in China, this date is famous for being the “Double Eleven Shopping Festival.”
Let’s take a look at how this unique event began
and how it evolved into one of the world’s largest online shopping festivals.
The Double Eleven Festival originated from Alibaba’s Taobao Mall.
It was first launched in 2009 as an online sales promotion created by Alibaba itself.
Why November 11th?
Because the date “11·11” consists of four number ones —
which look like four single people standing together.
That’s why it was nicknamed the “Singles’ Day.”
In the beginning, the holiday had a humorous and playful tone.
It started as a fun day among young people,
especially college students in the 1990s,
who used the day to make fun of being single and celebrate in their own way.
Then, in 2009, Alibaba cleverly connected this idea of “Singles’ Day”
with online shopping promotions.
They launched the first-ever Double Eleven Shopping Festival on Taobao Mall,
and the results were explosive.
In its first year, total sales reached only 50 million RMB,
but by 2024,
the total transaction value across all platforms had grown to 1.44 trillion RMB —
making it one of the largest commercial events in the world.
Today, Double Eleven has expanded far beyond just a single day.
The shopping period now stretches across a week, ten days, or even a whole month,
with not only e-commerce platforms but also supermarkets and department stores joining in.
What started as a “Singles’ Day” has now become a Shopping Carnival,
symbolizing the rise of consumer culture in modern China.
It reflects both the strength of China’s e-commerce industry
and the growing influence of consumerism in society.
If you’re interested in China’s digital economy
or planning to explore the Chinese market,
the Double Eleven Shopping Festival is a great case study to learn from.
And of course, feel free to leave your thoughts in the comments below —
What do you think about China’s shopping culture and the rise of Double Eleven?