Alibaba's online marketplace Tmall reports record high sales in mid-year shopping spree

HANGZHOU - Alibaba's online marketplace Tmall saw the gross merchandise volume of payments in kind up 38.5 percent during June 1 to 18, a period that marks China's mid-year shopping festival online, according to data released Tuesday.

A total of 128 brands on the platform reported sales over 100 million yuan (about $14.5 million) during the period and the growth of the total turnover was its highest since 2017, according to Jiang Fan, vice president of Alibaba Group and President of Taobao and Tmall.

Tmall also reported a higher proportion of consumers in the fourth-tier cities and rural areas, at 49 percent during this year's "618" online shopping event.

The "618" online shopping event was created by China's e-commerce giant JD to mark its anniversary years ago.

Tmall also announced its plan at the press conference held Tuesday to upgrade its online stores via technologies, including AI and AR, as 5G commercialization speeds up.

Clothes for sale will be closer to the naked eye effect via the latest 3D modeling techniques, and consumers can customize models of their own body shape on phones to try on clothes virtually in the future, the company said.

The platform also plans to add 3D window displays to its online stores to accelerate the digital transformation of the brands.