The second Xiaohongshu Street Lifestyle Festival – a major highlight of the Shanghai Summer International Consumption Season – recently wrapped up in style in Shanghai.

Xiaohongshu – which is also known as RED – is a popular social media and e-commerce platform in China.

Running from Aug 23 to Sept 1, the festival featured more than 200 events showcasing the creative talents of Xiaohongshu's platform creators, businesses, buyers and influencers – all set against the backdrop of Shanghai's vibrant and innovative urban culture.

Building on the success of last year's festival – which drew over 200,000 participants – this year's extravaganza saw nearly 300,000 registrations on the Xiaohongshu app and welcomed close to 600,000 attendees.

The festival featured around 3,000 Xiaohongshu creators and captured the interest of both locals and tourists.

In particular, one standout attraction was the "duck on the street" installation – a 20-meter-tall mascot symbolizing happiness and creativity, which became an immensely popular spot for photos.

The festival transformed multiple districts with its themed streets offering a diverse mix of activities – including shopping, dining, music, games and chic fashion shows.

Inspired by the citywalk trend that originated in Shanghai and quickly spread nationwide, the festival created immersive experiences and encouraged online-offline interactions.

This strategy was said to not only boost consumer engagement, but also to promote a dynamic cycle of online "seed-planting" – referring to recommending or promoting a product to stimulate people's desire to buy it. That's as well as on-site "weed-pulling out" – a term referring to purchasing something one has longed for – both within the Xiaohongshu community.

Sources: Jiefang Daily, Shanghai Observer