The mass departure of core hosts from East Buy marks a pivotal moment in the company’s evolution. Within a 24-hour window, veteran presenters Ming Ming, Tian Quan, Zhong Can, and Lin Lin announced their resignations, signaling a deepening rift between the platform’s original 'knowledge-driven' charm and a new, rigid corporate management style. This exodus is the clearest sign yet that the firm is doubling down on its 'de-anchor-ization' policy.
This shift is not an accident but a calculated outcome of a strategy led by Executive President Sun Jin, a New Oriental veteran. The goal is to ensure that no single personality can ever again hold the platform hostage, a lesson learned painfully from the high-profile departure of former superstar host Dong Yuhui. By diluting the influence of individual human assets, East Buy hopes to transition from a talent-led agency to a product-led retail giant.
To facilitate this, East Buy is expanding its roster from 27 to 60 hosts and launching over 20 specialized matrix accounts. The content has shifted from the poetic, educational storytelling that first made the brand famous to a more conventional, high-frequency sales and promotion format. This 'industrialization' of live-streaming seeks to turn hosts into interchangeable operators in a larger retail machine, focusing on throughput over personality.
Strategically, the firm is positioning itself as an 'online Sam’s Club,' focusing on self-operated goods which now account for over 50% of its Gross Merchandise Volume (GMV). By developing a proprietary App and a robust membership system, East Buy hopes to lock in consumers through product quality and logistics rather than host charisma. Recent 'buy 2 get 2' membership promotions highlight this aggressive push for institutional loyalty.
However, the transition remains fraught with financial risks. While gross margins have improved to 32% due to the focus on self-branded goods, total GMV has continued to slide, and the proprietary App’s membership growth has begun to stall. The company now faces a fundamental question: Can an e-commerce platform born from social media personality survive the transition into a cold, algorithm-optimized retail giant?