This is Why Alibaba’s Co-Founder Thinks the Company’s Singles Day Didn’t go Well

According to Jack Ma, the co-founder of China’s Alibaba, the company’s Singles Day event this year didn’t meet expectations because it was too “hot” and the event fell on a Monday.

Ma also said he hoped the government would give people a half day off of work for future Singles Day events.

Alibaba accumulated gross merchandise value (GMV) of 268.4 billion yuan or over $38.3 billion, setting a new record.
The GMV to measures sales across its shopping platforms.

The company’s huge 24 hour shopping event offers thousands of products with heavy discounts. “Double 11,” another name for the event, had met market forecasts but Ma wasn’t pleased.

“What I want to tell you is that the sales of Singles Day this year hasn’t even reached my expectation,” he said.
“11.11′s numbers surpassed forecast and went beyond what most people expected from today’s economy,” Ma remarked at the 5th World Zhejiang Entrepreneurs Convention on Wednesday.

“Wall Street predicted that 11.11 would grow by around 20%, a sign that China’s consumption is weak and the economy is slowing down. But our numbers actually grew 25.7%.”

He added, “There are multiple reasons, one of them is that the weather is too hot. Clothes sell better when it’s cold. Another reason is that it’s a Monday.”

Disclaimer: We have no position in Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (NYSE: BABA) ) and have not been compensated for this article.