Vipshop will force you to choose one of the two?Aistock will not agree to the first one!

Yesterday, the topic of "Aikucun's Real-Name Reporting Against Vipshop" became a hot discussion among many. This was sparked by Aikucun's statement calling for Vipshop to immediately cease its "either-or" competition tactics.

Vipshop: You Can't Have Both Fish and Bear's Paw

Founded in 2008, Vipshop (NYSE: VIPS) started with a brand clearance sales model, focusing on clearing end-of-season goods. It went public on the New York Stock Exchange in 2012 and currently boasts a market capitalization of $11.33 billion.

Aikucun is a provider of new e-commerce infrastructure, launching in 2017. Although it arrived later on the scene than Vipshop, it has still made a name for itself. Within its first month, it achieved sales exceeding tens of millions, and it has received investments totaling billions of yuan, making it a standout player in the e-commerce field.

In the realm of e-commerce, competition is inevitable, and verbal sparring between Aikucun and Vipshop is not new. In response to the eruption of the "Aikucun's Real-Name Reporting Against Vipshop" incident, Vipshop described Aikucun's actions as "a staged publicity stunt," indicating that they did not want to further engage in public discourse.

However, Vipshop's response appears to be ineffective. Aikucun is often referred to as the "Vipshop of the micro-business world," as both share the same underlying business logic: brand clearance sales and inventory clearance. Coupled with impressive sales figures, Aikucun has become the biggest threat to the established giant, Vipshop.

Aikucun: The Rising Star of the E-commerce World

Despite the prevailing public perception of Vipshop, Aikucun, as a newcomer, not only boasts impressive performance since its launch but has also adopted a domain protection strategy similar to the long-standing Vipshop.

Currently, Aikucun's official website domain is aikucun.com. This three-syllable domain directly corresponds to its brand. While it may not match the three-letter domain VIP.com, which Vipshop acquired for $2 million (approximately CNY 12.13 million), the Pinyin domain name is highly suitable for Chinese users. It is easy to understand and remember, facilitating brand promotion. Aikucun has also secured other brand-related domains, including aikucun.cn.

However, Aikucun's primary domain, AKC.com, is already in use, making repurchase challenging. The company also owns several high-quality domains such as "mengxiang.cn" ("dream"), "xianglian.cn" ("Xianglian"), "xiangbi.cn" ("comparison"), "chedongjia.cn" ("Car East Home"), among others.

The e-commerce industry is particularly dependent on the internet and is constantly seeing the entry of new capital giants, resulting in fierce competition. High-quality domains have become a standard for internet companies, and Aikucun has excelled in this area. They not only hold domains that match their brand but also protect numerous premium domains for future development and planning.

Compared to its rapid growth in the past, Vipshop has shown signs of slowing down in recent years and faces significant growth pressure. In contrast, Aikucun, as a new force in the internet consumption sector, although starting later, has shown rapid growth and even increased its business performance during the pandemic.

However, in the long run, the "either-or" approach is detrimental. It not only infringes on the legitimate interests of businesses with multi-channel strategies but also deprives consumers of their freedom of choice. For the market to thrive, it is always better to promote fair and healthy competition to maintain industry order!