More than 160 British brands including Waitrose and Vivienne Westwood will be getting free advertising on Asia’s top eCommerce platforms thanks to a pioneering deal by the Department for International Trade (DIT).
Three China and Hong Kong-based e-tailers – ttHigo, Goxip, and MyMM – have agreed to run free banner advertising for a week to promote British goods on their platforms as part of the GREAT Festival of Innovations.
The three e-tailers have a combined potential audience of 720 million internet users across China and Hong Kong.
The week-long campaign is set to benefit 164 British brands in fashion, beauty, homeware and general consumer merchandise.
“As an international economic department, we are putting British businesses in a position to benefit from the opportunities that global markets provide and the GREAT Festival of Innovation in Hong Kong next week is just one example of this,” said international trade secretary Dr Liam Fox.
“Demand for the UK’s quality goods and services in key international markets is already growing and as we look to create our own independent trade policy for the first time in over 40 years our businesses stand ready to flourish.”
John Steere, president of MyMM, added: “We very much look forward to promoting UK brands among Chinese consumers as part of the GREAT Festival of Innovation.
“MyMM are delighted to be supporting an event which demonstrates UK excellence and seeks to drive future prosperity for UK exporters by strengthening trade links between the UK and Asia.”
The advertising deal will build on recent Office for National Statistics trade figures which show that trade in goods and services between the UK and Hong Kong reached £19.6bn in 2017, an increase of 15.1 per cent from 2016.
DIT’s E-Exporting Programme helps UK retailers and brands to accelerate their global growth through e-commerce.
It supports UK businesses by partnering with marketplaces to deliver online promotions, raising awareness for British exporters selling products on these platforms.