Online shopping gala sets records

Daphne Lee, head of Taobao's international business, said Alibaba has also partnered with international credit card providers on rebate promotions in Hong Kong.

More than 1,000 merchants are selling in the Hong Kong, Taiwan and Southeast Asian markets, while a parcel-forwarding service is being introduced for shoppers, Lee told the company's public relations portal in Hong Kong.

More than 20,000 merchants teamed up with Tmall to slash prices by up to 50 percent and entice tens of millions of bargain hunters.

Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi Corp, Japanese clothing vendor Uniqlo and E Fund Management were among the first companies to reach 100 million yuan in sales on Monday.

For merchants, handling a huge increase in customers, processing transactions and delivering the goods are among their top headaches.

Xu Liang, general manager of the Lian Trade Co, which sells skin care and facial products, said: "For Nov 11, we hired temporary staff to boost our call center numbers to more than 30.

"We also worked with outsourcing partnerships to find warehouses and prepare packages in advance."

Brian Lee of Sino Supreme, the licensed distributor of Elle handbags in China, forecast that sales will double to 24 million yuan.

Zhang Jingfei, a graduate student in Henan province, said she bought some items on Tmall that did not have discounts.

"The whole dormitory stayed up to snap up products. The feeling is that if you don't buy anything today, you lose out," she said.

Alibaba faced competition from many domestic rivals seeking to cash in on the occasion.

Suning Commerce Group challenged Alibaba by underscoring the importance of offline-to-online retail convergence, and encouraged customers to experience bricks-and-mortar stores before clicking the mouse to make payments.

Electronics and appliances e-vendor Jing Dong Mall launched a similar program in October. Boasting a self-built logistics network, it promises on-time delivery, a problem plaguing Alibaba's promotions last year.

Serge Hoffmann, partner at Bain & Co, a leading management consulting firm, said he believes more consumers are using the annual e-commerce shopping festival, largely fueled by the spread of smart devices.

He said the value of the Nov 11 transactions is significant in terms of gross merchandise value for Tmall. The increase in smart phones can also give customers access to online shopping round the clock.