Hungry: from August 1, takeout merchants in Liucheng, Henan Province will be free of Commission for one month

Chinese Restaurant Brands Going Global: What Keeps Customers Coming Back After the Opening?

How long can the queues outside a brand’s first overseas store last? And how many customers drawn in by the novelty will become regulars? For Chinese restaurant brands expanding internationally, opening a store is only the beginning of the challenge of building a local business and retaining customers.

Taobao Takes Double 11 to 20 Overseas Markets, Adding Free Shipping and More Than 1.2 Million Merchants

Taobao plans to run this year’s Double 11 shopping festival across 20 overseas markets, with free-shipping offers in 13 countries and regions and more than 1.2 million Taobao and Tmall merchants participating, the company said on September 21. The campaign extends the platform’s international push beyond small parcels, with furniture and home-improvement goods among the medium and large items it aims to ship directly overseas.

TikTok Shop Plans UK–EU Cross-Border Expansion, With Wider Access Scheduled for October

TikTok Shop, the e-commerce business of ByteDance（字节跳动）, has scheduled a cross-border selling pilot for selected UK and EU merchants from September 21, 2026, with broader availability planned for October 19. The expansion is intended to connect its British and continental European operations through shared seller-management tools, reducing some of the administrative work involved in entering additional markets.

Robam Plans USD 175 Million Joint Acquisition of iTronics Stake to Expand Overseas Kitchen Business

Hangzhou ROBAM Appliances Co., Ltd.（老板电器）has approved a proposal to acquire a controlling stake in thermometer business iTronics Holding Limited alongside its controlling shareholder. The planned USD 175.04 million purchase of 60% of iTronics would give the Chinese kitchen-appliance maker access to an established overseas business. The board approved the proposal on September 18, 2026; shareholder approval and relevant overseas-investment clearances remain outstanding.

Meituan and Ele.me Lose Lawsuits Due to Unfair Competition, Catering Businesses Benefit

On April 14, the Huaian People's Court of Jiangsu Province made a judgment that Beijing Sankuai Technology Co., Ltd. (Meituan) should compensate CNY 352,000 to Shanghai Lazasi Information Technology Co., Ltd. (Ele.me). Meanwhile, Ele.me was also ordered to pay fines to Meituan for the same reason.