American Fashion Designer’s Global Reach Soars with Alibaba

Today, American fashion icon Diane von Furstenberg uses Alibaba’s livestreaming to sell her dresses to tens of thousands of consumers in China. This is far different than the sales model she used when she launched her business 50 years ago and had to travel to department stores around the country to sell her dresses individually.

“Livestreaming allows me to speak not just to one person but to 18,000 people,” said Diane von Furstenberg. She added, “Thanks to livestreaming and Alibaba, we have the vehicle to explain to people (the DVF brand story), and that is a no-brainer.”

Using Alibaba’s content-rich tools to reach Chinese consumers, the DVF brand topped its sales record at last year’s 11.11 online shopping festival. DVF now livestreams monthly to continue to grow its sales to Chinese consumers. As a result, two years ago, Alibaba generated 1% of DVF’s sales, and now it’s up to 9% and growing!

Today, it’s about mixing fashion, entertainment technology and ecommerce.

—Diane von Furstenberg, Co-Chairman and Founder