360Buy, the Chinese B2C e-commerce site that’s currently in second place in that sector, has now diversified from its usual fare of books and electronics with a new venture – 360Top.com, which sells luxury brand cosmetics, handbags, and clothing for both men and women. You can even buy more ostentatious products, such as slabs of gold. It’s a major play in its battle against Alibaba’s Taobao Mall and other upcoming specialist online shopping sites.
We rather saw this coming, after last month writing of rumors that the fast-growing e-commerce site was about to leap into this sector. But speculators got the URL wrong, thinking it’d be TopLife.com. But now we know it’s not. Perhaps a good move to keep the ‘360’ moniker for some immediate brand recognition.
A typical 360top.com product page; this one for a Gucci bag.
The 360Top site comes with all the luxury brand names that Chinese consumers are increasingly seeking out, such as Chanel, Hermes, and Miu Miu. It also boasts a monthly online magazine.
It spells bad news for smaller competitors in China with a similar line of products, such as The Luxury Club and the late-arriving Gaojie. Even Chinese web giant Sina (NASDAQ:SINA) arrived at the brand-oriented party this summer, in a sign that such high-end e-commerce sites are about to hit the big-time.
