Beauty on-demand: One-hour delivery services for cosmetics the new ‘habit’ in China – Dada Group

Dada Group operates JDDJ, one of China’s largest local on-demand retail platforms for retailers and brand owners, as well as Dada Now, a local on-demand delivery platform open to merchants and individual senders across various industries and product categories.

In recent years, the company has observed the growing need for on-demand deliveries in the beauty sector.

According to a report on China’s Beauty New Retail by Yibang Research Institute, the beauty industry is entering a new phase of on-demand retail with omni-channel shopping becoming increasingly popular in China.

“With the new trend of the beauty industry in China, one-hour delivery is not just a need, but a consumer habit in the era of micro e-commerce. COVID-19 further fostered the market and formed the user habits of on-demand retail shopping,”​ said Guangsen Mou, general manager of JDDJ's fashion and digital electronics business department.

This trend was accelerated by the COVID-19 outbreak, which saw movement restrictions and lockdowns across China.

“COVID-19 was also an accelerator for on-demand deliveries and Dada Group’s business, which led to a significant increase for the business,”​ said Mou.

From a brand or store perspective, on-demand delivery is part of the digital transformation in the post-pandemic era.

“Along with changes in user habits, online and offline integration brings new sales engines for beauty stores and establishes online service standards for deliveries, by which beauty stores also have the need for digital transformation,” ​said Mou.

Opportunities in beauty

According to Mou, most users on the JDDJ platform are in their 20s or 30s, the same consumer base that most beauty brands target.

During the 11.11 Shopping Festival last year, sales of beauty products on JDDJ’s platform were nearly three times higher than the same period last year.

JDDJ currently hosts more than 3,400 offline beauty stores on the platform that cover both upper and lower-tier cities in China.

Most recently, the company announced a partnership with e-commerce platform JD and K-beauty brand Innisfree in December 2020.

Though this agreement, consumers can now get on-demand access to the Amorepacific-owned brand through Dada Now’s one-hour delivery service.

Innisfree will integrate its offline store inventory with JD’s online inventory allowing consumers to search on JD’s app for Innisfree products. Under this partnership, more than 230 Innisfree stores across China have been integrated into JDDJ’s platform.

When a consumer makes an order, the system will identify the nearest Innisfree within three kilometres and dispatch a Dada Now rider to make the delivery.

Additionally, JDDJ will collaborate with Innisfree in product management, digital marketing, user operation and fulfilment optimisation.

The company believes there are plenty of opportunities in the beauty category and is planning to continue focusing on expansion into the category.

Mou said: “JDDJ is committed to expanding into the beauty category in 2021, through in-depth collaborations with leading brands and retailers such as Watson, more offline stores launched on the platform, and meeting consumers' diversified needs.”​