China's online celebrity Zhang Mofan introduces a backpack to her online clients and fans through the live-streaming at her house in Beijing. - AP
HONG KONG (AP): At the height of China’s coronavirus outbreak, the skincare-products maker Forest Cabin closed more than half of its 300 stores across the nation as shoppers stayed home. With sales plunging, founder Sun Laichun decided it was time to reach his customers more directly.
"We knew it was time for us to focus on an online strategy to survive, ” Sun said. But the company didn’t launch an online ad blitz or announce big giveaways. Instead, it trained hundreds of its salespeople to begin hosting live video streams where viewers could get skincare tips and buy products without ever cutting away from the online patter.
