Arabian Oud China Market Entry
Arabian Oud is the world's largest fragrance retailer, with over 1,200 boutiques across the Middle East, Asia, United States, and Europe. But when they decided to enter China, they had no local presence — no entity, no trademark, no platform accounts, no team on the ground. They hired Shanghai Jungle to build and run the entire operation from scratch: Tmall Global flagship store, Little Red Book (Xiaohongshu) account, influencer campaigns, logistics setup, consumer research, and trade show representation. Everything you see below is managed by our Shanghai team as a single, integrated operation.
Tmall Global Flagship Store — Design, Launch, and Daily Operations
Arabian Oud sells on Tmall Global, Alibaba's cross-border e-commerce platform. This means they can sell directly to Chinese consumers from overseas — no Chinese company registration required, no local product approvals needed for fragrances sold cross-border.
We designed the Tmall Global flagship store from scratch, not from a template. The storefront, product pages, banners, and campaign visuals were all built around Arabian Oud's brand identity and positioned against local and international competitors in the fragrance category on Tmall.
Over 95% of Tmall traffic comes from mobile devices, so every element of the store was designed mobile-first — from product image sequencing to the checkout flow.
Our Shanghai team manages the store's daily operations (Learn More): product listing updates, pricing adjustments, inventory coordination, customer inquiries, and campaign execution during shopping festivals.
Bonded Warehouse and Logistics via Cainiao
Arabian Oud's products are stored in a bonded warehouse inside one of China's free trade zones, enabling cross-border delivery to Chinese consumers in 3–5 business days through Alibaba's Cainiao logistics network.
We coordinate inventory planning ahead of major shopping festivals — Singles' Day (11.11), 6.18, and Double 12 — to make sure stock levels match projected demand. Running out of inventory during a campaign on Tmall doesn't just cost you sales; it damages your store's search ranking for weeks afterward.
Little Red Book (Xiaohongshu) — The Platform Where Fragrance Discovery Happens
In China, fragrance discovery doesn't happen on Tmall — it happens on Little Red Book (Xiaohongshu) (Learn More). Consumers search for reviews, unboxing videos, and scent comparisons long before they visit a Tmall store to buy.
We set up and manage Arabian Oud's official Little Red Book (Xiaohongshu) account: content planning, post creation, community management, and performance tracking. The content is designed to drive brand awareness and direct traffic to the Tmall Global store when consumers are ready to purchase.
Influencer Marketing and Livestreaming Across Little Red Book (Xiaohongshu) and Other Social Media
We run Arabian Oud's influencer campaigns end-to-end: identifying fragrance-focused creators on Little Red Book (Xiaohongshu) and other platforms, negotiating directly (no middlemen or MCN agencies adding markup), managing content briefs, coordinating product seeding, and tracking ROI through to actual Tmall conversions.
For fragrance, the influencer landscape is specific. Generic beauty KOLs don't move the needle — you need creators whose audiences trust their scent recommendations. We built a network of fragrance-specific creators across both platforms, from micro-influencers doing detailed scent reviews to larger accounts doing lifestyle and gifting content.
Consumer Testing with Perfume Experts and Everyday Shoppers
Before finalizing which SKUs to promote, we ran structured consumer testing sessions in multiple cities with two main profiles: perfume enthusiasts and everyday consumers.
Participants evaluated scent profiles, packaging design, price sensitivity, and brand perception. The results directly shaped which fragrances we launched first, how we positioned them on product pages, and what price points we set relative to competing brands on Tmall. Market research conducted in China, with Chinese consumers — not assumptions based on what works in the Middle East or Europe.
Trade Show Representation
We managed Arabian Oud's presence at major fragrance and beauty trade shows in the region, including Cosmoprof Hong Kong and Notes Shanghai. Our team handled the full process: coordinating with event organizers, shipping and storing product inventory, setting up the booth on-site, arranging professional video shoots, and inviting fragrance influencers to experience the brand in person.
Arabian Oud at Cosmoprof Hong Kong
Throughout the entire duration of each fair, our own staff were in the booth — presenting products, answering questions, and engaging with every visitor. After the events, we collected contacts from interested buyers and distributors and designed a dedicated landing page to follow up with leads.
Customer Service in Mandarin — Built into the Store
Tmall stores are expected to respond to customer inquiries in real time. Response speed and quality directly affect your store's search ranking and conversion rate — Tmall tracks these metrics and penalizes slow or unresponsive stores.
Our Shanghai team handles all customer service for Arabian Oud's Tmall store in Mandarin: pre-sale product questions, shipping inquiries, returns, and after-sales support. This runs 7 days a week, 8am-midnight.
Why This Matters If You Are Considering Tmall
Everything described above — the Tmall store, the Little Red Book (Xiaohongshu) account, the influencer campaigns, the logistics, the consumer research, the trade shows, the customer service — is managed by one team in one office. No coordination between five different vendors. No handoff gaps between your agency, your logistics provider, your social media team, and your customer service company.
That's what working with a single Tmall Partner looks like when the partner actually does the work.
China rewards long-term brand presence, consistent exposure, and localized storytelling. Shanghai Jungle provides the on-the-ground execution and market expertise required to build a fragrance brand in China without intermediaries.
To explore your brand’s potential in China or build a tailored market-entry plan, contact Shanghai Jungle anytime.