Chinese e-commerce company Pinduoduo (NASDAQ: PDD) earlier this month hosted several Rolls-Royce Phantom automobiles on its platform, offering them at a discount of RMB 1.22 million (USD 187,000) to the official guidance price of RMB 10.68 million, Securities Times reported on Friday.
Pinduoduo users could participate by depositing RMB 99,999 (USD 12,590) to start a group-buying initiative for the models that were offered by Tuohai Automobile Flagship Store. More than 100,000 individuals were willing to do so, according to the paper.
As of now, there are no more Rolls-Royce vehicles available on the platform. A customer service employee of the Tuohai store told KrASIA that only a small amount of cars were once offered, declining to provide details.
Rolls-Royce told Securities Times on Thursday that the promotion, which was carried out by Pinduoduo as well as the store, was not related to the brand. The luxury manufacturer said that they are pleased to see marketing efforts from e-commerce platforms and vendors as long as they are not hurting consumer rights or the Rolls-Royce brand. “We are an open platform and welcome all brands and distributors to work with us,” a Pinduoduo spokesperson told KrASIA on Friday.
Pinduoduo, with 731.3 million users, the number two after Alibaba, has been enriching its offer that now reaches from iPhones to Teslas, and well beyond daily necessities such as cheap toilet paper and fruits.
Tesla said in August that a customer who purchased a discounted Model 3 on Pinduoduo would not have his order fulfilled by the carmaker, who claimed that the purchase violated its terms and conditions that forbid reselling, and thereby marking a substantial setback for Pinduoduo.
