JD com : CeraVe Doubled its Sales on JD.com in 2021 YOY

by Vivian Yang

On January 10^th, JD Beauty and JD Health joined hands with L'Oréal's active cosmetics brands to host a livestreaming session on JD.com to share skincare knowledge to the customers in China. The session is part of the three-party close collaboration that aims to offer easy access to dermatologists' advice to help Chinese customers choose and apply skincare products for sensitive skin.

CeraVe, a well-known skincare brand in the United States, is one of the brands included in the program. On JD.com, users can directly interact with JD Health's telemedicine doctors through CeraVe's product pages to get instant guidance on product selection as well as personalized skincare advice.

In 2021, CeraVe's sales on JD.com doubled year on year. Its star products - CeraVe Moisturizing Lotion and PM Facial Moisturizer - are quickly gaining popularity online. Other products including the hydrating cleanser, eye repair cream, hand cream and more are also rising in Chinese customer's recognition.

CeraVe's poster for JD's Chinese New Year shopping festival 2022

"We are excited to work with our brand partners to explore ways that can best present their products to Chinese customers", said Xuejiao Wu, a buyer for JD Beauty. Wu's team focuses on enhancing e-commerce performance of rising imported beauty brands on JD.com.

"Medical treatment is the anchorage of CeraVe," said Chris Zhou, brand general manager of CeraVe in China. The brand was originally developed with dermatologists for the treatment of psoriasis and eczema, but has since become popular with customers of all skin types. Ceramides, the essential ingredient of CeraVe's products, and its unique delivery system, known as Multivesicular Emulsion (MVE) technology, are effective in keeping the skin moisturized and helping to restore the natural barrier.

"Today in the US, people deem CeraVe equal to ceramides, so since we came to China in 2019, we've been seeking ways to communicate to Chinese consumers the uniqueness of our formula. We are very happy to collaborate with JD Health, China's leading telemedicine service provider, to underline our roots in dermatologists' approval," she continued.

CeraVe joined JD's first-party model in June 2019. Being fairly new to e-commerce operations in China, the brand received project-based support from JD Beauty's team in terms of leveraging marketing tool kits, users' engagement, market opportunities and more.

According to the latest industry report on functional skincare products in China by iResearch, a market consultancy firm, Chinese consumers' demand and awareness of functional skincare products have risen rapidly in recent years, mainly driven by three factors: solving skin problems, which over 70% of people in the survey claimed to be affected by, seeking safe ingredients, and product efficacy.

The report found that men in China are an awakening force for functional skincare consumption, with their monthly expenditure on skincare products often falling in the price range between RMB 300 to 500 yuan. CeraVe's efficacy and affordable price make it appealing to the young men cohort. This was evidenced in a recent JD campus campaign that CeraVe joined- after handing out trial samples on site, a strong uptick in sales and repurchase rate were seen on JD, Wu noted.

CeraVe debuted its gift package on JD.com last year on Chinese Valentine's Day, or Qixi Festival, which falls on July 7 on Chinese lunar calendar. The bundle turned out to be a popular choice among many ladies for their loved ones.

According to Zhou, JD's consumer base, which features more affluent, well-educated and purpose-driven shoppers in China's big cities, is a natural match for the brand because they have a strong desire for newer and healthier personal care products, such as pregnant women and mothers who prefer very safe products on themselves and their children.

"China is a massive country and JD is going deeper into the lower-tier cities and expanding its offline businesses. There are many things we can do together down the road to reach out to more and various types of partners and customers," Zhou added.

During last year's Singles Day Grand Promotion, JD Beauty launched its omni-channel service under the company's "Shop Now" initiative that has covered more than 7,000 physical stores across China. JD users can order beauty products online and enjoy one-hour delivery from participating nearby shops within a radius of 5 kilometers.

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