Yunnan province has recently seen a trend of livestream e-commerce and online tourist services.

In Kunming’s Dounan, a livestream program for selling flowers was launched, turning flower sellers into newbie broadcasters. And similar online sales have been initiated by local shopping malls, 4S car shops and real estate agencies.

What’s more, academicians, county heads and net celebrities all joined the livestream e-commerce amid the Covid-19 pandemic. 

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In face of the Covid-19 that has hindered economic activities since the beginning of 2020, county heads across Yunnan changed a lot, becoming newbie broadcasters.

In the live broadcast rooms, the serious county-level officials and experts talked in an easy manner. Like a friend, they shared their experiences in using the products. 

"Our flowers are beautiful and cheap," said Mo Wei, the county head of Luxi County, who got his wife a flower on his smart phone. Noting the gift from local farmers, Mo won an audience of 600,000 that day.

"The flowers have awaited you for quite a while," said Xu Bo, head of Kunming’s Jinning District. On March 8, the International Women’s Day, Xu sold 356,000 flowers online.

"Our red rice grown in the Hani terraced field is really nutritious ..." In just 3 hours, He Aihong, head of south Yunan’s Yuanyang county, sold over 50,000 kilos of red rice via livestream.

"The papayas with a “big belly”are of thick flesh and good taste.” On March 26, Deng Rui, head of south Yunan’s Hekou county, sold 80 tons of papaya online.

The list could go on and on. Using livestream e-commerce, Yunnan county heads have boosted local economy and contributed to poverty alleviation, winning Likes from viewers.

Live broadcast by officials helps farmers sell their produces, while boosting public confidence in resuming work and production, said Gao Jun, a researcher at the Kunming Academy of Social Sciences. Gao added it is a creative way to sink government to the grass-root level.

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Besides county heads, academicians, experts and net celebrities also helped sell Yunnan produces, using e-commerce platforms.

On April 7, Zhu Youyong, academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, sold online the potatoes grown in southwest Yunnan’s Lancang county. In just half an hour, 1 million viewed his live show, with 25 tons of potatoes sold in one hour.

Sheng Jun, president of Yunnan Agricultural University, showed Yunnan corn in lively words, inviting in 120,000 viewers online.

In 2019, Ma Lingmin, together with her young team members, toured around more than 30 villages in the remote areas of Yunnan, helping local farmers sell hundreds of tons of fruits and vegetables.

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The Covid-19 has dramatically spurred the digital economy featuring live broadcast, which is now highly visible at shopping malls in Kunming. 

The Kunming Parkson store launched a "cloud/online counter", turning its staff members into live broadcasters.

The Hang Lung Plaza in Kunming also offered consumers online malls, using the WeChat networks.

In April, Yunnan launched a shopping program to boost sales in home appliances, tour packages, oil products, and others.

Suning offered coupons worth 30 million yuan to consumers, while the Hema retails and Yunnan Jiujian each issued coupons worth over 10 million yuan. Quanyou, a home appliance provider, gave out coupons worth 50 million yuan.

All the coupons can be accessed by Yunnan consumers on a cell phone. Amid the Covid-19 epidemic, online livestreams form a new trend for consumption, bringing the affected economy back to life.

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Thanks to the growing 5G network, online sales have increasingly evolved into a new economic model in Kunming. At the same time, the city needs to step up its 5G construction.

According to the Kunming Bureau of Industry and Information Technology, the spring city has so far build up about 1,200 5G stations, with another 5,000 to be sut up in the year 2020.

In the coming five years, Kunming will have 5G coverage for all of its villages.

In the 5G era, we’ll surely enjoy more choices and better experiences in online shopping. 

By Gateway reporters