Cross-border e-commerce annual report on apparel: ZIBUYU (02420) continues to see a significant increase in profitability, with the bonus of brand and channel acceleration becoming more apparent.

In recent years, benefiting from the continuous increase in the global online consumption penetration rate and China's unparalleled competitive advantage in the supply chain, Chinese cross-border e-commerce companies have been advancing courageously and playing an increasingly important role globally. Taking the example of the footwear and clothing sector, China has been the world's largest clothing exporter for several consecutive years, thanks in part to leading cross-border e-commerce companies like ZIBUYU and Sailvan Times. By the end of April, GMTEight noted that cross-border e-commerce companies listed on A-shares and Hong Kong stocks had already disclosed their 2025 reports. As the two representative leaders in the domestic footwear and clothing cross-border e-commerce sector, both ZIBUYU and Sailvan Times showed double-digit revenue growth: Sailvan Times, with a larger scale, had a revenue of 11.82 billion RMB during the period, a 15% year-on-year increase; while ZIBUYU had a significantly higher growth rate, with an annual revenue of 4.66 billion RMB, a year-on-year increase of 40.2%. In terms of revenue performance, the two leaders each have their strengths, but there is a gap in profit. In 2025, ZIBUYU achieved a gross profit margin of 74.8%, while Sailvan Times was only around 42.7%, showing a significant difference. During the same period, ZIBUYU's net profit attributable to shareholders was about 270 million RMB, a substantial increase of 78.6% year-on-year, with a net profit margin of 5.8%; excluding share-based payments, the adjusted net profit margin was close to 6.1%. Sailvan Times reported a net profit attributable to shareholders of about 283 million RMB, a year-on-year increase of 32.2%, with a net profit margin of 2.4%. ZIBUYU's better profitability may be attributed to the company's long-term strategic focus on high-value fashion footwear and clothing, while Sailvan Times' business structure includes some categories with lower profit margins such as non-apparel accessories and logistics services, which somewhat lowers the overall gross profit margin. Additionally, ZIBUYU has been continuously improving its organizational and product capabilities within the strategic framework of branding, focusing on nurturing ten core brands and effectively increasing operational efficiency through refined operational strategies, thereby driving stable growth in overall gross profit margins. In recent years, cross-border exports have entered a new development stage focused on brand efficiency as a core competitive element, where the ability of brands to influence and shape customer shopping decisions and demands over a period of time is tested, while emerging channels like independent platforms are gradually rising. GMTEight observed that currently both ZIBUYU and Sailvan Times are expanding their branding and omni-channel layout strategies, but with different emphases on pathways and pacing. ZIBUYU completed its brand system construction in 2024, entered a comprehensive period of vigorous efforts in 2025, and has already released management dividends brought about by organizational and business restructuring. Taking ZIBUYU's professional women's clothing brand Cicy Bell as an example, a product priced at $58 has consistently ranked first in a sub-category on Amazon for a long period, with nearly two months of orders primarily relying on organic traffic. This means that consumers are beginning to actively search for the brand name, and once brand awareness is established, the subsequent marketing leverage effect will inevitably continue to grow. At the same time, in 2025, ZIBUYU's non-Amazon channel revenue increased by over 70% year-on-year, accounting for 8.5%. Among them, revenue from TikTok platform increased by 77.1%, and revenue from self-operated independent platforms surged by 189.7%. Taking the high-end women's clothing brand Rich Radi Qs (RQ) that ZIBUYU is focusing on as an example, public data shows that RQ's total visit volume on independent platforms soared to 139,000 in the first quarter of this year, continuing its strong performance from the previous year. It is undeniable that cultivating user loyalty and brand premium requires a long period of accumulation, but in the perspective of long-term development, ZIBUYU's current strategy and approach undoubtedly provide a valuable reference for cross-border e-commerce companies to truly grow and strengthen overseas. In the author's view, ZIBUYU and Sailvan Times are clearly excellent representatives of the advancing Chinese cross-border e-commerce companies, leading the wave of Chinese brands going global. In terms of current achievements, Sailvan Times has a larger scale, while ZIBUYU has faster growth and higher profit quality. From the current valuation perspective, ZIBUYU has a static P/E ratio of only about 7 times, much lower than Sailvan Times' 30 times; and considering ZIBUYU's distinct branding strategy, efficient refined operations, and leading position in omni-channel evolution, its expected growth potential and valuation level are evidently mismatched, which is expected to create more substantial long-term value for investors.