(Yicai Global) March 9 -- Women in China celebrated International Women’s Day by going out to eat and buying hiking gear, cosmetics, and dietary supplements.

A Haidilao hotpot restaurant manager in downtown Shanghai said to Yicai Global that the number of table reservations jumped by around 20 percent on March 8 from usual. Sales volumes of bubble tea at Heytea's outlets in Shanghai surged by four times during the global holiday that brings attention to gender equality from a week ago.

Women are paying attention to self-care. Vipshop Holdings, which runs an e-commerce platform Vip.Com, revealed that one week before March 8, sales of beauty instruments jumped more than six times from a year ago. Sold volumes of beauty products such as concealers and foundation rose by around 20 percent.

Several mothers, sisters, and friends have presumably received flowers yesterday. Chinese e-grocer Dingdong Maicai said that pre-sales of a fresh batch of tulips totaled 10,000 stems and the shipment was sold out on March 3. E-commerce titan JD.Com said that from March 1 to March 6, sales of fresh flowers on the platform more than doubled from a year ago.

The trend of leisure fashion is expanding. Vip.Com’s statistics show that a week before March 8, sales of women's casual clothing skyrocketed. Sales of comfy pants rose by 43 percent while people were also purchasing more casual footwear.

Women are getting increasingly interested in the great outdoors. A week before March 8, sales of hiking shoes more than doubled on Vip.Com from a year earlier. Moreover, women were looking for sports hoodies, outdoor jackets, overcoats, and sports skirts.

Other popular categories of shopping are jewelry and luxury. A week before International Women’s Day, sales of golden bracelets, earrings, necklaces, and other accessories jumped by 40 to 50 percent on Vip.Com. The surge for luxury brands was 16 percent from a week earlier.

Health is another point of focus as volumes of probiotics purchased by women on Vip.Com grew by 58 percent year-over-year. Moreover, women were making sure they get enough fatty acids to prevent heart disease as sales of DHA fish oil soared by three-quarters YoY. 

Editors: Shi Yi, Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi