Bringing durian snowskin mooncakes to China

EVEN as Covid-19 prevented Golden Moments’ management from visiting China, the company was preparing for its mooncakes to reach consumers there.

The Singapore-based durian confectioner had been planning to enter the Chinese market for years. When the pandemic hit in 2020, founder and managing director Josiah Seow did not let that change his mind.

“No one was going to China (during Covid-19), so if we could get in early and set our feet there, we (would) get a headstart as the only Singapore durian brand there,” Seow said.

Since August 2022, Golden Moments’ products have been available on popular Chinese e-commerce platforms such as Tmall and WeChat, ready to be delivered to consumers within 48 hours.

Making a gift of the king of fruits

Golden Moments was founded in 2017 as a manufacturer of durians and durian confectioneries, including products intended as gifts.

“Durian is the king of fruits, and I want to present the king of fruits in a different light,” said Seow. “I want durians to become part of the gift-giving experience.”

To that end, Golden Moments produces durian confections – such as snowskin mooncakes, cakes, mochi, chocolates and puffs – with elaborate gold-coloured packaging, suitable for corporate and personal gifts. Its products feature only the premium Mao Shan Wang variety of durian.

China’s booming gift-giving culture made it the ideal first overseas market to which Golden Moments could expand, said Seow: “China has the biggest population, many Chinese enjoy eating durian, and we felt that our high-quality durian products are suitable for the Chinese market.”

Thorny issues

Entering China during the pandemic was far from easy. In mid-2021, still unable to visit due to border restrictions, Seow hired his entire core team in China remotely through WeChat video calls.

The company then set up its base in Shenzhen, with Seow conducting and monitoring operations remotely.

Pandemic aside, there were other challenges. Seow had to brush up on his Mandarin in order to communicate better with his team. Golden Moments also had to adapt to the new market, by modifying its packaging and taking a different e-commerce approach.

“As Golden Moments is in the business of gift-giving, understanding the Chinese gifting culture is important for us,” Seow said. Packaging was modified to suit the preferences of the new market, such as making the entire gift box gold-coloured and translating the text.

And instead of having its own e-commerce platform as it does in Singapore, Golden Moments offers its products on widely-used Chinese platforms.

Logistics was another issue. Golden Moments can deliver its products within 90 minutes in Singapore through local delivery services, but China’s land size makes that impossible. To cover the whole country, it relies on Chinese logistics company SF Express.

One of the biggest challenges the company faced was building the brand from scratch in China.

Noticing the widespread use of social media to promote products, Seow collaborated with Chinese influencers in an online marketing campaign: “We started the brand from zero, so we needed (them) to push and advocate for Golden Moments.”

Timing was everything. Golden Moments chose to officially launch its Mao Shan Wang durian snowskin mooncakes in China last August, in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival in September. Seow finally managed to visit in June, to prepare for the launch.

Apart from social media content, the campaign included an offline event during the festival season, with media outlets and influencers invited to Shenzhen to taste the mooncakes.

The efforts paid off: the snowskin mooncakes were completely sold out for the Mid-Autumn Festival season there.

Going further

Golden Moments plans to expand further into China and is exploring offline channels, with pop-up stores in shopping malls in Shenzhen this year.

It has expanded its Chinese e-commerce offerings beyond snowskin mooncakes to include more products such as durian mochi and ice cream.

Seow said: “Establishing a consumer base takes time. Our next step forward is to diligently grow the market slowly and take one step at a time.”

Back home, Golden Moments continues to look for ways to improve its products and brand experience.

With a peak of 600 to 800 daily deliveries in Singapore, the company plans to improve its delivery fulfilment service and update its backend system. It has enhanced the user experience on its e-commerce platform, adding customisable gift-card messages and letting customers choose specific delivery dates.

The company also recently launched its “Eat Fresh Durian at Cost Price” campaign for the durian peak season, with an annual membership programme that grants discounts of 30 per cent to 50 per cent on fresh durians.