Singles Day: What is it?

It’s like a day for you. And a day for ‘me.’

The holiday season is wonderful in that it reminds us of friends, family and loved ones. The holiday traditions – the gift giving, the celebrations and events – are often geared toward families, kids, moms, dads, etc. It’s easy to overlook one group, singles. Chinese young people recognized this and developed “Singles’ Day” as a way to show their pride in their single status.

How Did Singles’ Day Begin and Become So Big?

Singles’ Day originated in China in the 1990s. November 11, or “The Day of One,” acts as a day to not only give gifts to your single friends and family, but to also make purchases for yourself. In an article published by TIME Magazine, Singles’ Day is depicted as comparable to Black Friday or Cyber Monday for Chinese individuals. In fact, it was far more than that.

By 2015, Singles’ Day had become the biggest online shopping day in history at $14.3 Billion. For perspective, that $14.3 billion figure is over four times the sales of Cyber Monday (the Monday after Thanksgiving) in 2015.This event is not only booming in China, but is beginning to spread worldwide. Last year, the US saw about $1.4 million.

Some suggest that Singles’ Day won’t take off in the US since the original inspiration came from Chinese students and thereby the US doesn’t have an emotional connection to it. As today is singles day, here are some things you might see during this occasion and how to make the most of 11/11, The Day of Ones, next year:

Keep an eye on consumer spending in the US:

As a retailer, you may see a rise in spending today. It may benefit to analyze how Singles’ Day is effecting you now and plan for the future.

Help make gifting to single friends fun:

It can be beneficial to play up on the celebration of everyone in your customers’ lives. Singles’ Day is a great reason for individuals to buy gifts for their single friends and family.

Promote self-gifting:

Getting a gift and splurging on yourself is great from time to time. Let your customers know that you value them no matter their relationship status.

There could be the possibility that you may never hear of Singles’ Day again. Or, maybe seeing the calendar flip to 11/11 will inspire you to use this obscure holiday to help with sales. Or, if you’re fully onboard, you may even decide to browse the virtual aisles of the online shopping world yourself. Who knows, you may help someone find that perfect gift for that special someone who didn’t even know they had their own day.

Watch China break spending records:

It is projected that Alibaba, a giant trade platform sometimes compared to Amazon, will see sales at around $20 Billion this year on Singles’ Day.