An advertisement promoting Alibaba's Singles' Day shopping festival is pictured, following the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Shanghai, China, October 22, 2022.
Sweaty Betty China Vice President Lexie Morris told Reuters the active-wear brand would use only "one or two" livestream hosts this Singles Day season and that it was starting to work with much smaller and more sports-focused livestreamers.
Analysts expect to see another year of slowing sales overall this Singles Day, dampened by a slowing economy and China's zero-COVID-19 policy.
In June, Alibaba rival JD.com Inc (9618.HK) also recorded its slowest-ever sales growth for 618, China's second-largest shopping festival after Singles Day.
"Instead of a traffic-driven model, Taobao Live helps merchants grow their businesses sustainably," it said.