CHINA BRIEF | Pinduoduo to launch wholesaling feature to take on Alibaba

E-commerce platform Pinduoduo (NASDAQ: PDD) has gone live with a new wholesaling feature called Duoduo Pifa, allowing merchants to procure goods for resale, Chinese media outlet Jiemian reported on Monday.

However, the wholesaling feature, while functional, is still waiting for more suppliers to join and is therefore not yet active.

The Duoduo Pifa wholesaling feature is similar to Alibaba’s 1688 platform, which is the country’s largest online platform for businesses to procure goods.

Alibaba’s wholesale business in China, including 1688.com and Lingshoutong, which targets mom-and-pop stores, generated RMB 2.8 billion (USD 394 million) in revenue in the first quarter of this year, accounting for 3% of the e-commerce giant’s entire revenue.

Pinduoduo has not replied to KrASIA‘s request for a comment on the new wholesaling feature.

This article is part of KrASIA’s “China Brief” section, where KrASIA’s reporters will provide quick daily updates about the tech ecosystem in China.