Nicomama Files IPO Prospectus: The Rise of a Maternal E-commerce Powerhouse Built on Quality and Trust

Li Danyang, Founder of Nian Gao Mama, with Her Son Xiao Nian Gao

Li Danyang, founder of Nian Gao Mama, spent three days at the New York Toy Fair and was amazed by the ingenuity of foreign children’s toys.

As the operator of a WeChat account with 7 million followers, “Nian Gao Mama” has undoubtedly become a super IP in the maternal and infant sector, having secured three consecutive rounds of investment from Matrix Partners China and Ziniu Fund. Currently, its e-commerce platform maintains a stable average monthly turnover of approximately RMB 50 million. These impressive achievements place it far ahead of its competitors.

Li Danyang holds a Master’s degree in Clinical Medicine from Zhejiang University. After giving birth to her son, “Niangao,” in 2014, she became known as “Niangao Mama,” left her job to stay at home, and devoted herself entirely to childcare while her husband provided a high income. For a woman, this is a fairly common life choice. However, Li told VCBeat that she could not stay idle during her time at home. To promote Niangao’s healthy growth, she not only read parenting books, followed science popularization experts, and kept detailed notes on complementary feeding, but also shared parenting knowledge and experiences in mothers’ online groups. Gradually, she became widely recognized as a “parenting expert.”

To borrow a trendy term, Li Danyang possesses inherent “influencer” appeal. She shares dry parenting knowledge in vivid, concise, and engaging language—a skill honed by her years of writing travelogues. Of course, to ensure accuracy, she meticulously reviews and cross-references information, relying only on authoritative sources such as the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the UK’s National Health Service (NHS), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the Hong Kong Department of Health.

“In fact, I have a natural sensitivity to language. Back then, I even considered majoring in journalism at Zhejiang University; the heart of an artsy young woman never truly fades.” Recalling the past, Li Danyang self-deprecatingly refers to herself as an out-and-out “WeChat official account dog.”

Before long, encouraged by other mothers, Li Danyang launched the “Nian Gao Mama” WeChat Official Account. Initially, she simply wanted to start an account—nothing more. By 2014, the WeChat Official Account platform was no longer a novelty; there were already successful large-scale accounts with hundreds of thousands of followers, making the landscape fiercely competitive, akin to thousands of soldiers crossing a single-plank bridge. While past examples offered lessons, maintaining daily updates still required considerable patience and perseverance.

“At first, I could only update the content after coaxing Xiao Niangao to sleep. Even though I was so tired at night that I could barely keep my eyes open, I still struggled to continue writing. Therefore, in the beginning, Niangao’s Mom only published two to three articles per week.”

On July 31, 2014, the Niangao Mama official WeChat account published its first article: “Sleep Characteristics of Infants Aged 0–4 Months—Reading Notes on The Baby Sleep Solution.” It garnered over 5,000 views and 20 likes. Even by today’s standards, it is difficult for any niche WeChat official account to surpass 5,000 views without tens of thousands of followers. On August 18, 2014, the article “Complementary Feeding Series (I): Timing, Sequence, and Basic Principles for Introducing Solid Foods” became Niangao Mama’s first piece to achieve more than 100,000 views. To this day, articles on complementary feeding remain a flagship column.

“Someone once asked me how to excel in self-media. The answer is relentless perseverance. While others might revise their work once, I would revise it three to five times, stubbornly working until midnight or 1 a.m. Every day, you are thinking about what to publish the next day.” Li Danyang firmly believes that there are no shortcuts in content creation; slacking off is not an option. Even for a relatively minor topic, she consults numerous authoritative international websites to ensure that the information delivered to users is accurate.

One change is that, starting in 2015, the update frequency of the “Nian Gao Mama” WeChat official account increased from three times per week to six times per week. This shift brought immense pressure. “Seven days a week, on call 24 hours a day—it was grueling. My parents didn’t understand what I was doing at all, and I once thought about giving up. Fortunately, I persevered.”

In March 2015, Li Danyang, known as “Gao Ma,” established the “Nian Gao Mama Maternal and Infant Service Studio,” built her own editorial team, and has since continued to expand the workforce by recruiting for various positions, including content assistants, art directors, videographers, post-production specialists, and illustrators.

In terms of content, the scope has expanded to include infant and toddler sleep, complementary feeding, maternal and child health, early childhood education, product recommendations, and parent-child travel. The format has also evolved from initial text-and-image posts to a richer mix that includes comics, videos, and audio. Within less than a month of adopting a team-based operational approach, the follower count surpassed the 100,000 mark, with view counts stabilizing at over 100,000.

“100,000+” is a figure of profound significance. For an article, it means going viral and dominating social media feeds; for a WeChat Official Account, having over 100,000 followers entails greater responsibility while also unlocking more possibilities.

It was reported that on July 2, 2015, Nian Gao Mama’s first piece of content in comic strip format, titled “How to Care for Your Baby in Hot Weather? Master These Six Tips to Outshine the Neighborhood Aunts,” was released. On July 8, 2015, Nian Gao Mama partnered with Ximalaya to launch the “Gao Ma Radio” channel, featuring audio versions of selected articles.

This aligns with the natural evolution and growth trajectory of a WeChat Official Account. On April 2, 2016, “Niangaomama” (Rice Cake Mom) launched its self-produced video series, “Gaoma’s Mini Classroom.” The inaugural episode, lasting 3 minutes and 36 seconds, featured Li Danyang on camera, teaching mothers how to prepare vegetable purées for their babies. Content operations gradually gained momentum.

“Two years ago, I would carefully review the view counts and titles of every article. As I recall, we devoted considerable effort to the series on infant complementary foods, as we needed to apply rigorous selection criteria to the content and produce the videos ourselves.”

It is precisely this dedication that has driven “Baby’s Complementary Food Diary,” the flagship WeChat official account under Nian Gao Mama dedicated to sharing information on complementary feeding, to surpass one million followers in less than six months since its launch. This same meticulous approach has propelled Nian Gao Mama’s most-read article to over 2 million views, with current headline articles consistently maintaining around 500,000+ views. The most viral piece, titled “One Sentence to Prove How Lazy Your Child’s Father Is!”, garnered more than 17,000 likes on comments alone. These achievements are truly remarkable.

Anyone who operates a WeChat Official Account knows that managing followers, particularly through interactive dialogue, is extremely labor-intensive. At times, thousands of direct messages from users flood in, creating an overwhelming deluge that leaves one at a loss for where to begin. However, Li Danyang carefully reads every user comment, analyzing which topics interest them most, so she can select targeted subjects and write accordingly.

In terms of content curation, we hold editorial meetings where the team collectively discusses topic directions, identifies trending subjects, and pinpoints the issues most concerning to mothers. Once the direction is confirmed, we proceed with article writing. We avoid blindly chasing trends or resorting to sensationalist clickbait headlines. Our content delivers substantial value—informative yet engaging.

A review of recent posts on the “Nian Gao Mama” WeChat official account reveals that headlines such as “Dominant CEO Liu Qiangdong Actually Stays Home to Do This with His Daughter” and “After the Joy City Incident: The Deadliest Hazard in Malls Isn’t the Railings, But This!” have sparked widespread discussion. The content is both informative and engaging, earning numerous likes from online users.

“It’s quite special to receive responses from grandmothers. In many families, the older generation holds more traditional views and finds it difficult to accept new concepts, often hindering the adoption of scientifically backed methods. Therefore, gaining support for our science-based parenting philosophy from grandmother readers is particularly rare and heartening; it shows that even the older generation can keep pace with the times,” Li Danyang shared, highlighting some users from the grandmother demographic. Unexpectedly, there are indeed grandmothers among the followers of “Nian Gao Mama.”

In recent years, content entrepreneurship has been booming. Accounts such as “Mi Meng,” “Liu Shen Lei Lei,” and “Pomegranate Granny’s Report” have generated annual revenues exceeding tens of millions of yuan simply by publishing articles with embedded advertisements. Platforms and brands like “Logical Thinking,” “Rice Cake Mom,” “Yitiao,” “Ergeng,” and “Uncle Tongdao” have attracted significant investor interest. Paid content is also gaining momentum. Indeed, opinion leaders can be found in every niche sector.

How Did Nian Gao Mama Break Through? Li Danyang Chose E-commerce. Her first attempt dates back to late 2014. On December 9, an article titled “Keep Your Baby’s Skin Hydrated: A Three-Step Winter Skincare Routine” was published on her official WeChat account, introducing several winter skincare methods and mentioning a specific eczema cream. Numerous followers left messages in the backend expressing their interest in purchasing it. Li Danyang proactively contacted suppliers and facilitated the first group-buying deal. Within half a day, products worth over 100,000 yuan were completely sold out!

Winter in Hangzhou is quiet and serene, unlike the biting cold winds of the North. Yet Gao Ma could no longer contain her excitement; it was more than just a small, personal joy for a woman. She suddenly realized that what had started as a modest side hustle had unexpectedly grown into something significant. After the Spring Festival in 2015, Li Danyang began to treat e-commerce as a serious business venture.

In May 2015, the Niangao Mama team welcomed a heavyweight CEO. Lin Wei, known as “Niangao Papa,” resigned from his position as Supply Chain Director at a Fortune 500 company to officially join Niangao Mama, where he took charge of the team’s operations. Li Danyang told reporters, “Since we started the business, Niangao Papa has always given me tremendous support. In the beginning, I would have him review every article from a reader’s perspective. From the moment he resigned, I felt that I was no longer fighting alone, and I no longer had any worries about operations.”

Lin Wei’s arrival directly accelerated the shift toward e-commerce. At this stage, Nian Gao Mama began to bring in capital, as e-commerce is a cash-intensive business. In fact, from an investment perspective, it was largely the investors who proactively proposed investing. Initially, Matrix Partners China approached Nian Gao Mama, but the offer was declined.

Later, former CCTV host Zhang Quanling reached out to Li Danyang, bringing along Fu Sheng, founding managing partner of Ziniu Fund and CEO of Cheetah Mobile. “I reviewed various WeChat official accounts, and my rationale for investing in Nian Gao Mama was quite straightforward. I was astonished to find that it had nearly 2 million followers, with a daily open rate exceeding 50%. Having long monitored television ratings, we fully understood how remarkable such engagement metrics were on WeChat. Therefore, Fu Sheng and I traveled to Shanghai to meet with her, and I quickly decided to invest,” said Zhang Quanling.

Thus, in August 2015, Zhang Quanling’s Ziniu Fund, led by the former CCTV host, and Matrix Partners China jointly invested in the angel round. The small yet exquisite “Nian Gao Mama” was poised to take flight.

In October 2015, the “Gao Ma Select” brand was launched, marking Niangao Mama’s formal entry into e-commerce operations. Products frequently sold out within hours of being listed. In November of the same year, the “Gao Ma Select” e-commerce platform officially went live on the Niangao Mama WeChat official account, experiencing rapid growth.

This is a fascinating juncture. Since its launch on August 23, 2012, the WeChat Official Accounts platform saw its user base surpass 10 million by October. Nearly all self-media operators running official accounts are grappling with one question: How can I monetize my content? Anxiety and uncertainty abound. Even prominent influencer “Liu Shen Lei Lei” is pondering how to commercialize a account dedicated to reading Jin Yong’s works. Could it be that he intends to build up the account’s popularity and then sell it to Mr. Jin Yong himself?

Making Friends with Time: Nian Gao Mama Has Been Relentlessly Striving! In December 2015, Nian Gao Mama secured tens of millions of yuan in Series A funding from Ziniu Fund and Matrix Partners China.

Regarding the investment in Niangao Mama, Fu Sheng, Founding Managing Partner of Ziniu Fund and CEO of Cheetah Mobile, once stated: “Ziniu’s most profitable investment has been Niangao Mama, a project that integrates the internet with the traditional maternal and infant market. Our judgment at the time was based on recognizing the growth potential of logical thinking and identifying the emerging major trend of converting content into e-commerce.”

Gaoma Select’s procurement team consists of experienced mother-buyers. Each product offered for sale must be trialed by at least three team members, who then submit trial reports. Before listing, Nian Gao Mama and Little Nian Gao personally test and approve every item. Any product deemed unsatisfactory is subject to immediate veto. Gaoma Select adheres to the principle of recommending only “hassle-free, practical, high-quality products.”

Li Danyang also shared a set of data with reporters: during the June 1st promotional event in 2016, 3,000 sets of building blocks were sold out in 10 minutes, and 10,000 sets of English picture books were sold out in two hours, with daily revenue exceeding RMB 10 million. In July 2016, the total number of followers for “Nian Gao Mama” surpassed 5 million, with monthly revenue exceeding RMB 50 million. During the 2016 “Double 11” shopping festival, e-commerce momentum was unstoppable; 600,000 items were shipped, the follower count exceeded 6 million that month, and sales revenue surpassed RMB 80 million.

Regarding the user composition of Nian Gao Mama, Li Danyang revealed that the core user base predominantly consists of individuals with middle-to-high income levels. The typical consumers are primarily mothers, with some high-spending users making single transactions of nearly RMB 10,000. In terms of geographic distribution, the user base is not heavily concentrated in first-tier cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen; instead, it is evenly distributed across second- and third-tier cities. Additionally, there is a significant number of highly educated mothers who are eager to learn advanced parenting concepts.

The best-selling items on the platform include toys and picture books, while infant formula and diapers account for a relatively small proportion, only around 20%. Currently, Li Danyang reported that the Gaoma Youxuan platform maintains a stable average monthly turnover of approximately RMB 50 million, with the highest single-month turnover exceeding RMB 80 million and the highest single-day turnover surpassing RMB 20 million. Clearly, Gaoma Youxuan has become a leader in the content-driven e-commerce sector.

The team led by Lin Danyang has established a content matrix that includes “Nian Gao Mama,” “Nian Gao Mama Education,” “Baby Food Diary,” and “Gao Ma Select.” Core team members come from large, well-established companies such as Procter & Gamble, Alibaba, and JD.com. The overall team comprises more than 180 employees and includes departments for customer service, human resources and administration, finance, operations, creative services, product management, research and development, procurement, marketing, and logistics.

Many mothers are involved in core operations such as content creation and product selection. As most people might imagine, women make up the vast majority of staff at Nian Gao Mama, with a male-to-female ratio of approximately 1:3.

Everything appeared to be smooth sailing, with rapid ascent. Yet inevitably, Nian Gao Mama also faced unavoidable challenges that come with rapid growth on the entrepreneurial journey. In the summer of 2016, Nian Gao Mama’s user base surpassed 5 million, and the monthly sales volume of Gao Ma Youxuan reached RMB 50 million.

Impressive figures can sometimes be a thorn in the side for e-commerce businesses. Having strong sales capabilities is futile if suppliers lack the capacity to fulfill orders, as this inevitably compromises the consumer experience, leading to predictable negative feedback.

Sure enough, on the eve of the 2016 Double Eleven shopping festival, as sales surged, customer service failed to keep pace. Public opinion pressure and customer dissatisfaction flooded in like a tide. With storm clouds gathering, Gao Ma’s immediate reaction was: “Are the paid trolls at it again?”

“Later, Huang Yungang’s words from Jingwei struck a chord with me. When problems arise, we should first reflect on what we did wrong and make improvements accordingly,” Gao Ma analyzed calmly. “There is indeed room for improvement in our services. Users have the right to complain if they are dissatisfied. It is not terrible to stumble during entrepreneurship; the key is to resolve the issues.”

Nian Gao Mama has begun to intensify its efforts to address issues, starting with customer service. Compared with large comprehensive e-commerce platforms such as Taobao and JD.com, Nian Gao Mama’s advantage lies in its more precisely targeted follower base, which leads to differences in customer acquisition methods and costs. However, major platforms impose very high standards on customer service, and users have become accustomed to the service experience offered by these leading platforms.

“Our original customer service team initially consisted of just one or two people. As sales rapidly increased, our service capabilities failed to keep pace. Consequently, we devoted considerable time to building the customer service team from the ground up and establishing our own standards.”

CEO Lin Wei was deeply impressed by the company’s customer service infrastructure. He stated, “Product details, orders, inventory, logistics, and after-sales support—all these data points must be seamlessly integrated. Although these granular pieces of information are invisible and intangible to users, they directly impact customer experience. To enhance our customer service quality, we optimized and replaced four different customer service systems in 2016 alone. For instance, we continuously refined our configurations based on user scenarios within WeChat, achieving a customer satisfaction rate of over 90% for customer service interactions.”

Difficulties have certainly been encountered. Facing difficulties is not frightening, as long as one has the courage to confront them and solve problems. The Nian Gao Mama team reflected internally to identify exactly where improvements were needed.

Regarding content homogenization, Li Danyang also shared her perspective: “This is actually a common challenge across the industry. When creating content, we adopt the perspective of mothers and convey information in clear, accessible language. Our philosophy is that parenting can be simple. Accordingly, our products, services, and even future business models will all be grounded in this principle. If we identify maternal needs that align with our values and philosophy, we will pursue them; otherwise, we will not.”

In early 2017, the follower count of the “Nian Gao Mama” WeChat official account surpassed 7 million, making it a formidable presence. The primary challenge at hand was how to break through the ceiling in this sector!

On January 13, 2017, “Nian Gao Mama” held its Series B financing and service upgrade strategy launch event, themed “Making Parenting Easier,” at the Beijing National Convention Center. CEO Lin Wei announced that the company had secured RMB 60 million in Series B funding, with additional investments from existing shareholders Ziniu Fund and Matrix Partners China. In 2017, the company will comprehensively upgrade the service strategy for its e-commerce segment, “Gao Ma Youxuan,” to enhance the service system of its e-commerce operational ecosystem.

With capital flowing in once again, upgrading the shopping experience has become both urgent and feasible.

The upgrade strategy will focus on multiple aspects, including supply chain, product selection, and after-sales service. It encompasses eight layers of protection, such as brand authorization, authentic sourcing, authoritative testing, and hassle-free returns and exchanges. The core objective is to strengthen the e-commerce service system, enhance the user shopping experience, and provide fans with trustworthy guarantees of authenticity, ensuring that every product listed on “Gao Ma Select” is 100% authentic and of premium quality.

To upgrade the e-commerce experience, it is essential to first enhance the supply chain and warehousing logistics. In January 2017, Nian Gao Mama introduced safeguard measures such as “100% authentic products, tenfold compensation for counterfeits, 15-day return policy, and 30-day exchange policy,” thereby addressing its previously conservative return and compensation policies and establishing a unique position in the self-media e-commerce sector.

Product quality is ensured through a rigorous selection process. Li Danyang explained that during procurement, 20 to 30 items are chosen from over 100 candidates. These items are first tested by employee parents within the company, narrowing the selection down to one or two products. The final choices must then receive joint approval from both Li and the CEO. Subsequently, product copywriting is used to inform users why a particular item was selected, how it outperforms similar products, and how to use it effectively. Additionally, backend data analysis is now employed to monitor user feedback on product demand in real time, which also plays a role in guiding product selection.

We insist on thorough trial use, with both adults and children participating, before writing any recommendations. The Niangao Mama team calls this “in-depth experiential shopping guidance.” We do not sell products simply because they are recommended by suppliers, nor do we prioritize items with higher profit margins. We only offer products that we genuinely endorse. This selection mechanism will continue to become more stringent. By curating only premium products and securing official authorization from brands to ensure authenticity, we provide items that truly meet mothers’ needs, which naturally leads to strong sales performance.

Regarding quality control, Li Danyang told reporters: “We have engaged third-party inspection agencies, including SGS (SGS-CSTC Standards Technical Services Co., Ltd.) and the Zhejiang Academy of Inspection and Quarantine Science and Technology, to exercise professional oversight over product quality. Furthermore, we conduct 100% comprehensive inspections on all cross-border e-commerce goods upon warehouse entry, maintain 24-hour surveillance within our warehouses, and have secured product liability insurance from PICC for our proprietary products, ensuring that every item is underwritten by The People’s Insurance Company of China.”

Engineer at the Zhejiang Academy of Inspection and Quarantine Science and Technology conducts burn tests on textile fibers from products sampled from “Gaoma Youxuan.”

As for after-sales service, we have been learning from and aligning with leading e-commerce brands. Nian Gao Mama has already implemented such after-sales guarantees as “15-day no-questions-asked returns and 30-day exchanges.” “We are willing to take responsibility and hope to set a standard and example in the field of self-media e-commerce.”

Focusing on user experience in its e-commerce segment, even building its own warehouses—with some products resembling JD.com’s self-operated business model—marked the most critical turning point for Nian Gao Mama.

Regarding product selection, Zhang Quanling, a partner at Ziniu Fund, offered a straightforward explanation: “The Niangao Mama team has devoted substantial resources to quality control, encompassing brand verification, factory production monitoring, random logistics inspections, and after-sales service. For such a team, quality control is the absolute core priority that must be upheld regardless of the cost. This is precisely why it is essential to collaborate only with top-tier brands.”

Selection of Brand Partners: Nian Gao Mama has established an Authentic Product Guarantee Alliance with multiple well-known maternal and infant brands, including the exclusive Chinese distributor for U.S.-based B.TOYS, the exclusive Chinese distributor for U.S.-based BabyGanics, U.S.-based Green Sprouts, the exclusive Chinese distributor for U.S.-based iplay, and STM China. Additionally, it has formed a Genuine Publication Guarantee Alliance with several publishing institutions, such as China Children's Press & Publication Group, 21st Century Publishing House, Dolphin Media, and Qingdou Book Workshop. Furthermore, strategic cooperation intentions have been reached with major brands in the paper products industry, including Unicharm.

“Unicharm, we have collaborated for a long time. Mothers highly recognize the Unicharm brand, resulting in strong sales performance. Consequently, Unicharm reached an intention for strategic cooperation with us. Moving forward, they will supply their products directly to us through their Japanese suppliers and include Nian Gao Mama on their designated partner list. This is a significant affirmation of our work,” revealed Li Danyang.

Nian Gao Mama and Unicharm Reach Strategic Cooperation Intent

The greater the platform’s influence, the more willing brands are to collaborate with it—a win-win scenario. Moving forward, Nian Gao Mama will continue to bring together professional talent to strengthen its core capabilities in content creation and across the entire e-commerce value chain.

On this trip to New York, Li Danyang also approached the journey with a collaborative mindset, aiming to select outstanding partners while learning from their advanced concepts. For “Nian Gao Mama” (Rice Cake Mom), who boasts 7 million followers, building a robust ecosystem is clearly more important than mere numerical growth.

Now, the foundation is being laid, and the future holds limitless possibilities. As Li Danyang summarized her entrepreneurial journey: “At thirty, when dreams are met, life has only just begun.”