Mogujie was China's top fashion e-commerce platform — then it lost 95% of its value

Mogujie was founded in 2011 by three former Alibaba engineers in Hangzhou. It started as a social e-commerce platform focused on women's fashion, using a content-driven model where fashion bloggers and influencers curated product recommendations. By 2015, it had become one of China's leading fashion e-commerce platforms, competing with Vipshop and Alibaba's Tmall.

In January 2016, Mogujie acquired its main rival Meilishuo in a merger of equals, creating a combined entity valued at approximately $3 billion with over 200 million registered users. The strategy was to combine forces against Alibaba and JD.com in the women's fashion e-commerce space. Mogujie went public on the NYSE in December 2018 at $14 per share, raising $66.5 million — but this was already a sharp reduction from earlier ambitions. The IPO valued Mogujie at approximately $1.5 billion.

The post-IPO years were brutal. Mogujie faced intensifying competition from Alibaba, JD.com, and the explosive rise of Douyin and Kuaishou's livestream e-commerce. The social commerce model, built on fashion bloggers, was outflanked by short-video and livestream platforms that offered far more engaging shopping experiences. Revenue declined year after year, and the company never turned a profit.

By 2024, Mogujie's stock was trading below $1, and its market capitalization had fallen to under $50 million — a decline of over 95% from its IPO valuation. The company's official social media account even posted a video titled 'Those Brands That Have Disappeared,' listing itself among once-popular platforms that had faded from relevance.