China market entry support
Listing your product isn't enough. If nobody knows you exist, nobody buys.
Enter the market through social media. Faster, cheaper, and more testable than a traditional marketplace launch.
The problem
Most brands start in the wrong place.
Most brands think market entry starts with Tmall or JD. Five years ago that could work. It really can't anymore. Social media should come first.
No social proof, no sales
You launch a Tmall store. Products go live. But nobody searches for your brand because nobody has heard of it. Zero reviews. Zero orders.
Discovery happens on social
Consumers check RedNote before they buy. They search Douyin for demos. They look for your WeChat. They find nothing. They buy from a brand that shows up.
Social media should come first
People need to know your brand exists before you invest in a Tmall flagship. Social builds the awareness that makes marketplaces work.
Marketplace costs add up fast
Tmall Global typically requires ¥100,000+ in setup and deposit fees before you've sold anything. A social-first approach starts from ¥15,000/month.
Social commerce
Social platforms aren't just awareness channels anymore. They sell product.
You can enter the market through social commerce first. Test products, build a following, collect actual sales data, and prove there's demand before taking on the cost and complexity of a full marketplace operation.
Douyin
RMB 3.5 trillion in e-commerce sales in 2024. Users find a product in a video, tap a link, buy without leaving the app. Third-largest e-commerce channel by transaction volume.
RedNote
Supports in-app purchases, brand stores, and livestream shopping. A consumer can go from reading a KOC (Key Opinion Consumer) review to checkout in under 30 seconds.
WeChat Mini Programs
Full e-commerce stores inside WeChat. Product catalog, payment, order tracking, loyalty. Active Mini Shop merchants doubled in 2024, total GMV up 200% year on year.
Cost comparison
¥100,000+
Tmall Global setup: deposit fees, annual charges, store design, and minimum ad spend before you've sold anything.
¥15,000 to ¥30,000/mo
Social-first entry: account setup, content production, and KOC seeding. Testing product-market fit with real people giving real feedback.
Doesn't mean you should forget about marketplaces. Just means social should come first. It builds the awareness and trust that marketplace sales end up depending on.
What we do
Market research and account setup
Market research
We study your category before anything else. Who's selling similar products, what platforms they use, what content works, how they price things, and where the openings are.
Account setup and verification
We register and verify your brand accounts on all relevant platforms. WeChat, RedNote, Douyin, Weibo. Each has its own verification process, managed entirely by our team.
Brand localization
Chinese brand naming, visual identity adaptation, packaging guidance, and messaging frameworks for each platform. Trademark registration starts early while social moves forward.
Commerce
Social commerce integration
Douyin Shop
Cross-border sales without a domestic entity. Products link to short videos and live streams, cutting the gap between discovery and purchase to almost nothing.
WeChat Mini Program stores
Your own storefront inside WeChat. Cross-border payment, product catalog, order management. Connected to your Official Account and distributable through articles, ads, and QR codes.
RedNote in-app stores
Product listings linked directly to your notes and KOL content. Ideal for brands in beauty, lifestyle, and fashion.
Cross-border logistics
Bonded warehouses and cross-border logistics providers handle fulfillment. No local entity or local inventory needed to get started. We connect you with the right partners based on your product category and shipping volumes.
Execution
Launch strategy and execution
We build a 90-day launch plan. Platform selection, content strategy, KOC seeding roadmap, ad budget allocation, milestone KPIs.
Then we run it. Content production, account management, influencer coordination, ad campaigns, weekly reporting. Everything that needs to happen in the first three months to go from nothing to something real.
Getting started
From zero to a live social presence in 30 days.
Discovery call.
Your brand, your product, your China readiness. No pitch deck. Just the right questions.
Entry plan.
Platform selection, account setup, content strategy, and commerce infrastructure. Clear scope, fixed price.
Live in 30 days.
Accounts verified, first content published, commerce infrastructure ready to take orders.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Everything you need to know about entering the China market with TheRedScroll.
No. Cross-border e-commerce lets you sell through Douyin Shop, WeChat Mini Programs, and RedNote stores without setting up a domestic company. You will need a Hong Kong or overseas business license and a logistics partner with bonded warehouse access. We help get all of that in place.
A social-first entry can start from ¥15,000 to ¥30,000/month covering account setup, content production, and KOC seeding. Add ¥10,000 to ¥20,000/month for advertising if you want to move faster. Compare that to Tmall Global which typically requires ¥100,000+ in setup and deposit fees before you've sold anything.
No, not forever. Both platforms are powerful once you have recognition and steady demand. But launching there first, without a social presence backing you up, usually ends with high spend and low return. Build awareness through social channels, then expand to marketplaces when the numbers support it.
If you're selling through Douyin Shop or a WeChat Mini Program, first orders can come in within 30 to 60 days. Repeatable volume usually takes 90 to 120 days as the content library and review base fill out.
Beauty, skincare, health supplements, food and beverage, fashion, lifestyle. Anything visual, reviewable, and story-friendly tends to gain traction fastest on RedNote and Douyin. B2B and industrial products take a different route, usually WeChat and Zhihu. Some categories like cosmetics, food, and health supplements face import registration requirements that can add 3 to 6 months to the timeline. We flag those early.
We cover the social media and commerce side. For product registration (CFDA for cosmetics, health product approvals, food import licenses), we work with compliance partners who specialize in that. We coordinate the process and tell you upfront what's required for your category.
Usually the issue isn't the listing itself. It's the lack of social presence driving traffic to it. We audit your situation and typically recommend adding a social layer: RedNote reviews, Douyin content, WeChat CRM. Marketplace numbers tend to improve once people can find your brand outside the marketplace.
Not directly. We work with established cross-border logistics providers and bonded warehouse operators. We take care of the platform and commerce setup. They take care of fulfillment. And we coordinate between the two so you're not juggling separate vendor relationships on your own.
Social media, overwhelmingly. Data from 2025 shows 42% of younger consumers search Douyin first when looking for products, 30% go to RedNote, and only 17% start on Baidu. Discovery happens inside social apps now, not on search engines.
Yes, that's all handled by the platforms. Consumers pay in RMB. You get paid in your local currency through the platform settlement process. Both WeChat Mini Programs and Douyin Shop support this.