Tmall is expanding its support for brand growth as its 2026 11.11 Shopping Festival attracts record participation, bringing together one million global brands and more than 70 million products.

Central to this year’s festival is a fuller understanding of consumer behavior and life stages, which helps brands to turn those insights into significant growth opportunities.

“From e-commerce to AI, Tmall has worked alongside brands to turn new technologies and evolving consumer needs into growth. As our AI capabilities advance, Tmall flagship stores are the central platform for brands to seize their biggest growth opportunity of the year and build lasting momentum in China,” said Liu Bo, President of Tmall.

The 11.11 sale will begin at 8 p.m. on October 20 in China, with pre-sales opening on October 15. For 88VIP members, Tmall’s highest-spending consumer cohort, the platform is offering flexible coupons to help shoppers maximize discount value. The 88VIP platform has around 64 million members as of June 2026, up by double digits year over year.

An AI-Powered Festival for Merchants and Consumers

Over the years, Tmall has expanded its AI capabilities to help merchants better understand consumer needs and make use of a wide range of AI-powered tools.

For consumers, this year’s 11.11 experience is built on the integration of Taobao and Qwen AI. In May, Alibaba connected the Qwen app to Taobao and Tmall’s entire product catalog and launched a Qwen-powered shopping assistant that helps users compare products, virtually try on clothing and select promotional offers.

Tmall’s “AI Token Center”, launched in September, is also offering consumers token plans from Alibaba Cloud, Z.ai and MiniMax flagship stores, introducing a new category to the shopping festival.

Global Brands Expand on Tmall with Exclusive Offerings

Global brands are using Tmall as a launchpad for new products that meet evolving consumer demands.

Ahead of this year’s 11.11, the number of merchants launching new products on Taobao and Tmall surged 64% year over year. In total, brands are introducing 50,000 hero products, alongside more than 2,000 exclusive products available on Tmall.

Apple is entering this year’s 11.11 with a strong presence on the platform. Apple’s latest foldable iPhone, the iPhone Duo, is debuting on Tmall, and consumers can apply platform discounts on the iPhone 18 Pro purchases.

Meanwhile, 60,000 new merchants will participate in 11.11 for the first time, including Los Angeles-based fashion and lifestyle brand ALO, which opened its first online store in China exclusively with Tmall in August.

With AI-powered merchant tools and more personalized shopping experiences, Tmall is giving brands the insights they need to connect with Chinese consumers this 11.11 and beyond.