The Hong Kong Shopping Festival (Chinese Mainland), organized by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC), concluded with remarkable success, generating over 115 million total views across online platforms, a 15% increase from last year. The event, held from 1 to 20 August, featured more than 280 brands and 600 products, offering exclusive discounts and live-stream sales on Douyin, JD.com, and Taobao. This year's theme, “Hong Kong Highlights, One Click Away,” underscored the festival's role in boosting Hong Kong companies' digital marketing capabilities and brand visibility in the mainland market.
The festival's momentum is now extending into Southeast Asia. For the first time, the Hong Kong Shopping Festival will be held on e-commerce platforms in Malaysia and Singapore from 21 to 27 September. This expansion is a strategic move to help Hong Kong enterprises tap into the rapidly growing ASEAN e-commerce market, which presents significant opportunities for cross-border trade.
Algernon Yau, Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development of the HKSAR, highlighted the positive sales performance reported by participating brands in the mainland version. He noted that the government will continue to support Hong Kong enterprises in developing e-commerce through funding, training, and promotion assistance. "This year, the Hong Kong Shopping Festival is expanding into the ASEAN region for the first time, facilitating Hong Kong enterprises to tap into another enormous e-commerce market," Yau said. He expressed hope that participating brands will seize this opportunity to enhance their brand awareness and showcase the advantages of Hong Kong products in the region.
Jacky Chung, Associate Executive Director of HKTDC, emphasized the festival's role in demonstrating the trust and quality associated with Hong Kong brands. "The strong reception once again demonstrates that Hong Kong brands and products are widely associated with trust and quality," Chung said. He added that the expansion into ASEAN builds on HKTDC's extensive promotional experience in the mainland and aims to lay a solid foundation for Hong Kong businesses entering the region.
The mainland edition featured over 30 live-streaming sessions for around 90 brands, attracting more than 10 million views. A new “Behind-the-Brand” origin-tracing live-stream series brought mainland streaming teams to Hong Kong for immersive tours of factories and retail stores, enhancing consumer understanding and trust. Health supplement brand Wai Yuen Tong reported a fivefold increase in sales on its Tmall flagship store during the event, attributing this success to the origin-tracing sessions. Vivian Tang, Executive Director, noted that the live-streams allowed consumers to understand their brand and production processes, building trust and generating interest.
Social enterprise Hello Cocoa, which employs staff with special educational needs, entered the mainland market for the first time this year. Through live-streaming and WeChat communities, the brand achieved over 200,000 impressions. Founder Louie Lu expressed enthusiasm for participating in the upcoming ASEAN edition to further expand cross-border e-commerce presence.
The festival also emphasized in-house live-streaming and content seeding to help brands develop their own marketing expertise. Hung Fook Tong, a third-time participant, saw sales double after two of its products were selected by renowned influencer Li Jiaqi for a live-stream session. Audrey Poon, General Manager, credited the festival for strengthening their e-commerce capabilities and brand image.
Startup Eco.babe, participating in live-streaming for the first time, increased sales of its insect repellent by over 50% year-on-year. Wesley Leung, Managing Director, valued the consumer feedback and data gathered, which will inform future product optimization and market positioning.
To engage younger demographics, the festival launched a designer toys category featuring artists Moon Lau and Kalok Chow. This generated over 60 million views across social media, a 20% increase. Natural Made, which entered the mainland through last year's event, saw brand exposure and product save rates double on its Taobao store. Kenneth Lee, Marketing Lead, praised the HKTDC's training programs for providing insights into platform algorithms and AI tools.
The inaugural Hong Kong Shopping Festival (ASEAN) will run from 21 to 27 September, with an official website and special campaign pages on Shopee and Lazada. Over 350 products will be featured with exclusive offers. To support newcomers, a limited-time online store will be available for merchants to test the market. The event aims to provide first-hand exposure to local e-commerce operations, strengthening the foundation for future expansion across ASEAN.
