Closer Look: Double 11 Is Big, but Is It Good?

(Beijing) – Once a year, Chinese consumers revel in a homegrown e-shopping promotion on November 11 dubbed "Double 11." The big sales day is mostly the brainchild of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., which turned an otherwise ordinary fall day into the world's biggest day of sales.

Sales through Alibaba's e-commerce websites broke records again this year – reaching more than 91.2 billion yuan – far exceeding that of any other shopping event such as Black Friday, the November day that Americans start buying Christmas presents.