“What they lack in spending power compared with Western teens or rich Chinese, diaosi make up for in sheer numbers,” Gu wrote. Singles’ Day got another boost when Alibaba promoted the 2011 event (11/11/11!) as the most epic Singles’ Day this side of the Qing Dynasty. By November 11, 2013, Singles’ Day had become the biggest online-shopping day of the year, with Alibaba processing more than five billion dollars in sales. This year, the total passed nine billion dollars.

http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/singles-day-chinas-black-friday