Alibaba made up a holiday, and it’s earning them billions. Alibaba’s Singles’ Day made $25 billion this year (blowing past Amazon Prime Day’s $1 billion earnings) by leveraging the spending power of young, rule-breaking Chinese consumers. The holiday was little-known until Alibaba turned it into a marketing campaign, celebrating un-married Millennials and encouraging a “Treat Yo’ Self” mentality. Alibaba even made a niche for luxury brands this year to ramp up sales in the form of an in-app popup shop, carrying brands like Guerlain and Burberry. (Digiday, Business Insider)
