YouYou Tube's 300-Fold Surge on E-Commerce Platforms Signals a New Era for POCT Commercialization
Another New Health Product Goes Viral on Tmall
On January 6, New Horizon Health announced that its Helicobacter pylori detection product, Youyou Tube, had received approval from the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) for its Class III medical device registration application. Half a month later, this at-home testing product made its debut simultaneously on Tmall Medical Health and Juhuasuan.Sales surpassed one million yuan in just three hours, and visits to the Nuohui Tmall flagship store surged 300-fold within the first 24 hours of launch.。
The strong sales of Youyouguan represent a breakthrough collaboration between pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers and e-commerce platforms, as well as a new market-oriented pathway for POCT (point-of-care testing), underpinned by digital innovation from both e-commerce platforms and pharmaceutical and medical device enterprises.
Is this innovation a matter of chance or inevitability? Behind the massive sales figures, is it a one-off phenomenon or a replicable model? With these questions in mind, we spoke with representatives from Tmall Medicine & Health and New Horizon Health to uncover the logic behind their strong sales performance.
Helicobacter pylori is currently the only known microorganism capable of surviving in the human stomach and is classified as a definite carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) of the World Health Organization. Survey data from 2021 estimating the prevalence of Helicobacter pylori infection suggests that the number of people carrying Helicobacter pylori in China may exceed 600 million.
During a physical examination, you may have undergone a breath test. This is because 13C/14CUrea Breath Test Detection System, currently recognized as the gold standard for Helicobacter pylori detection. However, according to Jin Chunbo, head of e-commerce at New Horizon Health, the breath test detection system is constrained by factors such as limited production capacity and a restricted number of testing institutions in the Chinese market 13CBreath test products can meet the testing needs of only 6 million people annually, accounting for just 1% of carriers.
Image source: Visual China Group
In short, the demand for testing has always existed; what is lacking are products with breakthrough innovations.
In the instructions for use, YouYou Tube is defined as “suitable both for professional medical personnel to perform Helicobacter pylori antigen testing in healthcare settings and for consumer self-testing.” In other words,The breakthrough of Youyou Tube lies in its "consumer product" attribute, which enables it to connect directly with consumers.
In this context, Tmall plays a pivotal role. As the core platform connecting New Horizon Health with consumers, Tmall is also key to driving the widespread adoption of Youyouguan at-home testing kits.
Regarding the successful debut of Youyouguan on Tmall, Ao Ding, head of Tmall’s Medical Health and Devices division, attributed the success to three factors.
“First, the synergy mechanism between Tmall and innovative enterprises.“Months before a product’s market launch, we engage in multiple rounds of communication with enterprises to confirm product details item by item and conduct in-depth discussions on mutual collaboration and support.”
“Next is the digital marketing strategy: The brand’s target consumer profile can be accurately identified, amplified, and precisely reached within Tmall’s user base.”
Years of accumulated operational experience have enabled Tmall to identify potential users for every high-quality product and devise effective marketing strategies. Today, this advantage is ingrained in its DNA, serving as a key competitive edge.
Furthermore, Tmall has established a comprehensive and efficient system that integrates commercial, logistics, and information flows, providing consumers with a controllable and reliable shopping experience. In this collaboration with New Horizon Health, the next-day delivery rate for Youyou Tube exceeded 60%.
In terms of after-sales experience, consumers can purchase Youyou Tube at hospitals, pharmacies, and other venues; however, if they encounter questions regarding its use, they cannot obtain immediate answers from physicians. On the Tmall platform, inquiries related to product usage, shipment, and logistics can receive timely responses and support through the customer service system, anytime and anywhere.
The triple advantage collectively constitutes Tmall’s capability to drive the explosive growth of new pharmaceutical and health products. This is a replicable capability; in fact, Tmall is expanding it from individual products to the entire pharmaceutical and health sector.
In disease prevention and control, the Chinese have always been "reserved."
There is a widespread lack of awareness regarding disease prevention and management across diverse populations and socioeconomic strata. Gradually shifting public behavior from passive, reactive medical care to proactive health-seeking practices would significantly alleviate the financial burden on both individual patients and the national healthcare insurance system, while also preventing irreversible physiological damage caused by diseases.
How can this phenomenon be changed? Authoritative science popularization and online medical consultations are among the approaches. Tmall and its partners are further expanding the reach of health services by collaborating with innovative healthcare companies,Tmall provides patients with a convenient and trustworthy channel to purchase various pharmaceuticals and medical devices without leaving home, making “preventive care” readily accessible.
This channel is equally powerful for enterprises.
Historically, pharmaceutical brands generally adopted a wait-and-see attitude toward e-commerce platforms. However, with the successive implementation of policies such as the “Two-Invoice System” and “Volume-Based Procurement,” coupled with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, traditional pharmaceutical companies that primarily relied on offline channels have faced increasingly severe market pressures.
Since 2020, international pharmaceutical giants such as Novartis and AstraZeneca have also ventured into the e-commerce sector. Novartis has gradually recognized the growth potential of e-commerce within its organization—E-commerce is not merely an online channel for purchasing medications, but also a vehicle for digital innovation models.
Novartis initiated its first collaboration with AliHealth by leveraging its heart failure medication, Entresto. Under the e-commerce model, drug distribution efficiency doubled, making it more convenient for patients to purchase the product, while the speed of subsequent feedback differed markedly from that of traditional retail channels.
This collaboration between Tmall and New Horizon Health once again underscores the value of the internet in the home healthcare sector. Jin Chunbo of New Horizon Health stated, “Tmall has played a significant role in boosting the sales of Youyou Guan, and through their joint efforts, the user base of New Horizon Health’s flagship store has also seen substantial growth.”
Moreover, companies can benefit from a relatively fair promotional pathway on Tmall, which means that the competition over various fees in traditional channels has shifted to competition based on product quality and service in new channels. From this perspective, Tmall has given R&D enterprises greater confidence.
The strong sales performance of Youyou Guan on Tmall is also a microcosm of the debut of new products in Tmall’s medical and health sector.
When entering the functional food market, Tmall conducted detailed research into the lifestyle habits of "Gen Z," pursuing innovations in both taste and ingredients for new nutritional products. This approach ensures that these products offer the palatability of snacks while delivering potent health benefits.
This youth-oriented mindset has helped Tmall and its partners achieve numerous sales successes, such as Minayo, which recorded single-month sales exceeding RMB 20 million in its second year on Tmall; WonderLab, whose first-year sales surpassed RMB 60 million; and BUFFX and Nelo, which have recently been frequent top performers on Tmall’s Medical and Health category rankings.
Colored contact lenses represent another classic case on Tmall. Although classified as Class III medical devices, colored contact lenses are gradually transitioning from medical devices to fashion and beauty products, driven by the growth of the domestic market and their popularity among young consumers.
Seizing this demand, Tmall has adopted a strategy that integrates colored contact lenses with color cosmetics and fosters the incubation of new brands. On one hand, it targets the younger generation by developing functional colored contact lenses with distinct recognition and broad acceptance; on the other hand, it engages in brand incubation, deeply integrating brands with the Tmall platform to achieve efficient conversion of its vast consumer base.
The same logic is now emerging in the pharmaceutical sector.Over the past five years, AliHealth has proactively seized the transformative phase in pharmaceutical sales, deepened its layout across pharmaceutical channels, and driven a series of blockbuster launches for new healthcare products.Among these are products that naturally align with the e-commerce model, such as the over-the-counter (OTC) hair loss treatment “Mandi,” as well as new and specialized drugs including AstraZeneca’s targeted lung cancer therapies gefitinib and osimertinib, and Qingdao Baiyang Pharmaceutical’s novel formulation of metformin nidate.
Bolstered by multiple partnerships, Tmall has gradually evolved into a “pharmaceutical and medical device e-commerce hub,” fostering mutual success between pharmaceutical and medical device enterprises and the platform. For these enterprises, new home-health products with consumer-goods attributes—such as blood glucose monitors and sleep aids—as well as biologics with specific therapeutic functions, including hypoglycemic agents and acid suppressants, are choosing Tmall for their product launches, all benefiting from independent and efficient digital marketing solutions. For patients, Tmall has created an inclusive platform: wherever logistics can reach, regardless of remoteness, individuals can access first-hand, high-quality medications available on the Tmall platform.
Chen Hao, General Manager of Tmall Medicine and Health, stated that Tmall possesses an inherent genetic advantage in launching new products. In the face of a maturing era of personalized health, Tmall is gradually breaking away from the conventional perception of being merely a sales channel, transforming into a one-stop innovation platform covering everything from brand new product R&D to market launch, and even progressively becoming an accelerator for incubating new products, new brands, and emerging industry growth trends.
How many more sparks of digital innovation will Tmall and its partners ignite in the health product sector in the future?