Yiwu is not big, create a myth! Rebellious programmers switch careers to selling slippers, earning 1 billion yuan annually!

It is often said that“the world’s small commodities originate from Yiwu,” and this statement is not an exaggeration at all.

From the dolls we buy through overseas shopping to the various products we see everywhere in markets and supermarkets while traveling abroad, most of them are labeled as “Made in Yiwu.”

Don’t underestimate this small city. Today, Yiwu has firmly established itself as the global center for small commodities.

With cross-border e-commerce booming, many merchants and brands in Yiwu have already deeply cultivated different tracks, and all are seasoned veterans.

Today, I want to introducePOSEE, a leading slipper brand that rose from Yiwu and went Tuke.

Image source:Google

Since its establishment, it first ranked among the top in the domestic e-commerce slipper track, then broke through and went Tuke, quickly becoming popular in Southeast Asia and other overseas markets, with annual sales exceeding1 billion yuan.

I believe everyone is curious:How did POSEE step by step break out from Yiwu and gallop Tuke? Next, let’s talk about its Tuke growth story.

Image source: Amazon

The Rebellious Programmer’s Cross-Border Career Change

According to public information,Mr. Wang, the founder of the POSEE brand, majored in computer science in college. After graduation, he refused a programmer job and chose to root himself in Yiwu, the world’s small commodity city, to start his own small business.

The reason he chose slippers as a category was due to his insight.

Mr. Wang found that the slipper market at the time was very rough. Most products followed a low-price route, lacked any sense of design, and had no established brands. Consumers were forced to choose between cheap compromises and comfortable quality.

Slippers are a daily necessity for home use, and comfort is a core demand. Yet the market has always lacked reliable brands that combine quality, aesthetic design, and high cost performance.

Image source:Google

So, he chose the slipper track. In2011, he partnered up and started with a white-label model, doing online wholesale slippers in Yiwu. In just half a year, he rushed into the top three on Taobao, but once fell into the dilemma of volume without profit.

To break the low-price competition and overcome business difficulties, in2013, the POSEE brand was officially established, redefining the category value and upgrading ordinary slippers from low-end daily necessities to practical and stylish home goods.

In the early days of entrepreneurship, the team deeply researchedEVA material formulas, repeatedly adjusting material density and rebound feel, and finally created a soft “stepping on poop feeling” with high rebound, shock absorption, foot arch fit.

At the same time, they added antibacterial, anti-slip, and silent features, precisely solving three major user pain points: smelly feet, easy slipping, and sole noise when walking.

Image source: Amazon

In 2014, the brand’s Tmall flagship store saw a sales explosion, selling out 30,000 pairs in just 10 minutes during a major promotion; on “Double Eleven,” the single-day GMV exceeded 1.5 million yuan, truly proving the huge market demand gap for comfortable + stylish slippers.

Yiwu Manufacturing Sells Out in Southeast Asia

After gaining a foothold and reputation in the domestic market,POSEE set its sights on Tuke, officially launching Tuke in 2019, the first year of Tuke.

To quickly open up sales channels, the first stop was Southeast Asia.

Southeast Asia is hot and rainy all year round, making slippers a high-frequency necessity; coupled with the local Buddhist culture, it further expands the daily wearing scenarios for slippers, making them highly compatible with the product.

Meanwhile, the local middle class continues to grow, and consumers are increasingly willing to pay for comfortable, well-designed brands, making the market potential very promising.

Image source:Google

On one hand,POSEE relies on Yiwu’s mature and complete supply chain advantages, supporting small batch, multi-style fast fashion operations through rapid prototyping, flexible production, and controllable costs, perfectly meeting the needs of rapid product iteration in Tuke markets.

On the other hand,POSEE also seized channel dividends, leading to explosive sales:

1. Deploying Third-Party E-Commerce Platforms

POSEE entered mainstream e-commerce platforms such as Amazon, Shopee, and Lazada, achieving high regional market penetration and greatly reducing customer acquisition costs.

Image source: Amazon

2. Entering TikTok Shop Tuke E-Commerce

In April 2022, TikTok Shop officially launched its Southeast Asia Tuke business. POSEE followed the industry trend and officially started operating TikTok ShopTuke e-commercebusiness in June of the same year, becoming one of the platform’s first seed brands.

In less than a month, the brand completed a rapid marketcold start,setting a new record for single live sales in the slipper category.

Since joining the platform,POSEE’s monthly GMV has continued to rise, and with the “Super Brand Day” during the Double 12 promotion, sales exploded, achieving exponential growth.

Now,POSEE has grown into a Tuke dark horse with annual sales exceeding 1 billion yuan, firmly occupying the leading position in the home slipper category.

Image source: Internet

POSEE’s Tuke Breakout Code  

Slippers are a product that looks similar on the outside, but the core experience depends entirely on wearing them. To quickly break out in the Southeast Asian market, social media became the perfect breakthrough.

POSEE understands this well and has worked hard on platforms like TikTok, using diversified marketing strategies to both plant the brand and efficiently drive product conversion.

1. Localized Account Matrix: Making Content Resonate with Users

POSEE’s first core strategy on TikTok is building a localized account matrix, opening local accounts for different markets such as Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines.

The brand customizes content around local user preferences, truly achieving “shoot what users love to watch,” letting content naturally enter users’ hearts.

Image source:TikTok

(Note:POSEE has now been renamed POSE, so basic information such as social media avatars and names have been updated to the latest version.)

Among them, the official account for the Philippine market@poseofficialph has the highest number of followers, currently with 310,400 followers and a total of 274,600 likes.

Image source:TikTok

The content of this account always revolves around the comfortable life brought by slippers, shooting many short clips close to daily life, and directly pressing the slippers by hand to intuitively show the softness and rebound and“stepping on poop feeling.”

Image source:TikTok

Currently, there are16 videos with over a million views in the account, including a viral video showing a user taking off sneakers, putting on comfortable POSEE slippers, relaxing and walking on the lawn, and playing with a dog.Viewshave reached3.2 million,likesare10,100.

In the comments, many users are touched by the sense of relaxation conveyed by the video, praising it as“a lifestyle slipper that brings healing,” and their favorability towards the brand continues to increase unconsciously.

Image source:TikTok

2. Live Streaming: Using Interaction + Discounts to Efficiently Drive Conversion

Besides short videos, creating continuous live streams through local accounts,isPOSEE’s second key strategy on TikTok.

Taking the official account for the Philippine market@poseofficialph as an example,to attract more potential users to place orders. It’s currently back-to-school season, and the live streampromotionsarevery strong,with discounts up to75%.

The host responds in real time to questions about material, color, and size,and this interactive Q&Anot only improves user experience and brand favorability, but also effectively drives order conversion with the help of discounts.

Image source:@poseofficialph account’s live stream

3. Launching Challenges: Embedding the “Stepping on Poop Feeling” into User Perception

In addition, to further amplify the voice,POSEE has a third fun strategy: launching the exclusive TikTok #posee slipper challenge, collaborating with local KOLs to plant the brand, and conveying the core selling point of “stepping on poop feeling” to more users through massive UGC content.

Currently,there are over 373,800 short videos under the #posee hashtag, making the brand thoroughly popular among young people in Southeast Asia.

Image source:TikTok

The Tuke Market Is Waiting for You

Looking back,POSEEwas able to succeed Tuke simply because the product was solid, the channels were tightly followed, and they were willing to spend time researching what local users want to see and want to buy.

At present, the slippersegmentin Southeast Asia and other Tuke marketsremains hot.

According toauthoritative data from dataintelo, the global slipper market is estimated to reach$48.6 billionin 2025and is expected to grow to $79.4 billion by 2034,with a steady CAGR of5.6%. The vast blue ocean market is waiting for more Chinese brands to enter and mine gold.

Image source:dataintelo

Remember:The Tuke market is not so mysterious, nor so unattainable. What truly makes the difference is whether you dare to take the first step.