The impact of e-commerce live streaming on China's apparel industry - an exploratory study based on value chain analysis

Abstract

E-commerce live streaming (ECLS) has been a huge success in China's consumer goods industry, and the economic benefits of live streaming + e-commerce are widely discussed. Numerous researchers are intrigued by this burgeoning sales channel, but they prefer to examine how ECLS influences consumers' purchasing decisions from a psychological standpoint. Little is known about the influence of ECLS on industries such as the apparel sector. All elements that drive industry trends can have an impact on the profitability and sustainability of a business. China is the greatest producer and consumer of clothes in the world, with a significant number of apparel enterprises and international workers. Consequently, evaluating the success of ECLS in China's apparel business has significance for encouraging the strategic upgrading of global apparel enterprises. Due to the paucity of relevant empirical studies, the paper collects secondary data from ECLS reports and data analysis websites to perform an exploratory study based on Porter's value chain theory. The paper seeks to get a basic understanding of the primary elements that drive value creation in the value chain of ECLS in China's garment industry and to provide guidance and hints for future researchers. The findings show that: first, ECLS promotes consumer purchase intention; second, ECLS enhances consumer bargaining power; third, ECLS reduces upstream distributors' marketing costs; and fourth, ECLS promotes downstream suppliers' productivity improvement. Finally, the paper also provide some suggestions for the strategic upgrading of apparel companies.