Famous Hong Kong celebrity Eric Tsang debuted on China’s most popular livestreaming app with astonishing sales figures and no shortage of backlash.
Since livestreaming has become one of the fastest growing trends for e-commerce platforms to promote sales in China, celebrities are cashing in the new trend as well.
Hong Kong actor Eric Tsang hosted his first livestreaming session last week, but the actor is accused of selling fake wines and spirits during his live-streaming session on China’s e-commerce platform Douyin, according to a report by Hong Kong local media HK01.
Douyin, the Chinese version of Tik Tok, is the most popular video streaming platform in China that has over 800 million users worldwide.
A household name in Hong Kong and mainland China, Tsang’s first appearance brought in a record sales of over RMB 14 million (US$2 million) for 24 different alcoholic drinks brands including wine, brandy, whisky, Chinese spirit Baijiu and beer.
At its peak, his streaming was watched by 170,000 people, and it generated over RMB 14 million in sales for the brands he promoted.
However, some customers complained they purchased what they believed to be counterfeit bottles.
One user said, “What they showcased in the streaming might be real but what customers received are fake.”
Another asked, “the QR code for Remy Martin can’t be read. Is it a fake?” when referring to the popular cognac brand. One replied to the comment and said he bought four and have returned them all.
One netizen wrote begrudgingly, “All fakes. Makes me really angry.” And another user bemoaned, “Brother Tsang, how can you trample our trust in you? First time shopping. Trap.”
Tsang and his team have yet to respond to the criticism. There are no official responses from Douyin or these brands involved if the products are in fact counterfeit.
But the allegation did not seem to affect Tsang’s popularity. His followers on Doyin increased from 1.62 million to 2.13 million after the streaming.
