One day, six thousand orders: FC Bayern’s first Singles’ Day in China

In China, Singles’ Day is the top shopping day of the year. It sees millions of people completing orders online, and for the first time since its inception in May, FC Bayern’s online flagship store on Tmall Global was part of the action.

Even though it was clear to see that Chinese soccer fans were mad about FC Bayern Munich during the team’s Audi Summer Tour in China this year, and even though their flagship store on TMall Global has been a clear success, it’s still staggering to see some of the figures reported from the shop following FC Bayern’s first Singles Day in China on November 11:

- 6,000 orders completed in 24 hours

- Number of orders 30 times higher than an average day

- Presales dating back four weeks prior to Singles Day

Given that amount of turnover in such a short period, preparation was key in order for Singles’ Day to be successful for FC Bayern’s online shop – and that’s where DHL’s eCommerce expertise came into play.

“Nobody can predict exactly what will happen for an event as large and highly-feted as Singles’ Day, which makes rigorous and careful planning all the more important,” said Thomas Kipp, CEO, DHL eCommerce, the unit in charge of end-to-end fulfillment of FC Bayern’s flagship store.

Anticipating the spike in demand, 29,000 additional FC Bayern articles were shipped to DHL’s Hong Kong fulfillment center ahead of Singles’ Day. Staff worked extra shifts to accommodate the increase in orders and get products delivered on time. The effort clearly paid off.

“Our 90 million Chinese fans always expect us to deliver an outstanding performance – especially during high-profile events such as Singles’ Day,” said Jörg Wacker, Executive Board Member – Internationalization and Strategy, FC Bayern Munich. “DHL ensures that our full range of merchandise remains in stock and is delivered to our fans in time, which is very important to us.”

Great is in the detail

Preparing for the rush is indeed a crucial part of success on Singles’ Day, but that requires creating a shop that is user-friendly for Chinese consumers in the first place. Chinese shoppers look for certain things in an online shop that make the experience familiar and trustworthy. One is a trusted brand – an easy one given FC Bayern’s global popularity and their current success in the Champions League, German Bundesliga, and German Cup competitions.

Another is a clear indication of authenticity. On FC Bayern’s Tmall Global shop, each article features over 15 photographs so shoppers know they are receiving genuine FC Bayern merchandise.

Finally, during the shopping experience, customers are guided through the buying process by online representatives in a chat – the virtual equivalent of speaking to a salesperson in a store. This is a highly-valued feature of the online shopping experience for Chinese shoppers, and one that becomes especially important during Singles’ Day.

Like many online retailers in China, FC Bayern featured a number of special offers and exclusive ‘one-day-only’ products for Singles’ Day. This only added to the importance that DHL’s eCommerce team had everything in place in advance.

At this rate, there is no doubt that the next time FC Bayern Munich make a trip to China, fans there will be fully equipped to greet the players from Germany’s most successful soccer team.

DHL and FC Bayern are working together for their second season. In addition to DHL eCommerce’s end-to-end fulfillment of the team’s flagship store in China, we take care of logistics for the team’s winter and summer training tours and away matches in the Champions League. Stay tuned to InMotionfor all the latest!