Women bought flowers and plants in higher numbers, while more men purchased skincare products and cosmetics during a recently concluded International Women’s Day-themed sales event on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok.

In China, International Women’s Day has become a major online sales event for top retail platforms, including Taobao, JD.com, and above all Douyin, which has expanded its e-commerce capabilities in recent years.

According to Douyin’s data, the gross merchandise volume for beauty and skincare products rose by 54% year-over-year, including a notable increase in purchases by men.

Purchases of makeup sets and concealers for men surged during the sale this year, increasing more than 27-fold and 22-fold, respectively, compared with 2023.

Euromonitor, a London-based research firm, has projected that China’s market for men’s skincare products will continue growing rapidly, with an average annual compound growth rate of 15.88% from 2021 to 2026. The market size is estimated to reach 20.7 billion yuan ($2.8 billion) by 2026.

Responding to this trend, the American beauty brand Estée Lauder told Sixth Tone on Tuesday that it launched a research center dedicated to male skincare last March. The company is also planning to broaden its offerings to include male cosmetics and perfumes.

In addition to the surge in men’s beauty products, the Douyin sales data reveals an increased interest among women in flowers, house plants, vases, and stands.

Data shows that female consumers boosted their spending particularly on flowers and house plants, with orders soaring by more than 200% and 128%, respectively, compared with last year.

Southern provinces like Yunnan and Guangdong have long been favored sources for these products. During the sale this year, data showed that flower orders from Yunnan tripled and orders for house plant seeds from Guangdong increased 150% from 2023.

Editor: Apurva.

(Header image: VCG)