SHANGHAI, July 9, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Since the beginning of 2025, Shanghai has seen a strong rebound in inbound tourism and spending. From January to June, the city welcomed 4.25 million inbound visitors, a year-on-year increase of 38.5%, while tax-refunded sales for departing travelers rose by 85%. To further boost inbound consumption, the launch ceremony of the 2025 "Shanghai Summer" International Consumption Season was held on July 4 at the West Bund Grand Theater. The event announced ten benchmark activities, nearly 300 customized and key city events, 14 Shanghai Summer themed products, and two themed services to enhance the summer experience for global visitors and help visitors leverage the city's 240-hour visa-free transit policy:
- China Eastern Airlines offers 1 million discounted tickets and 100,000 free half-day tours.
- Umetrip's HiChina app and Amap's English map enhance travel convenience.
- Dianping launches a multilingual "Shanghai must eat list," and Marriott International offers exclusive promotions.
- UnionPay launched "Shanghai Summer" themed cards across 12 districts/18 streets/metro/100k+ merchants.
- Visa created Payment-Friendly Demonstration Zones for 8 tourism routes, featuring "Tap to Pay", "Tap to Ride" (metro), and new payment options.
- Shanghai Pudong Development Bank provides easy foreign currency exchange, while Jiushi Group's Shanghai Pass enables seamless city travel.
Ten Benchmark Activities Ignite Shanghai's Summer:
- In sports, the Rolex Shanghai Masters (ATP1000) will return on September 29, and the FISE World Series • Shanghai, the world's largest extreme sports festival, will take place in October.
- In tourism, the Shanghai Tourism Festival Vacation Summer runs from July 5 to August 31, while Shanghai Disney Resort will feature China's first "Pixar Wonder" immersive exhibition. LEGO® World Play Day will host a 47-day citywide summer celebration.
- In culture, the Shanghai MISA Music Festival will present 29 environmental-themed performances by nearly 300 world-class musicians, while the Shanghai International Light Festival and Shanghai Summer International Anime Month will light up the city with 110+ events.
- In fashion, the SS2026 Shanghai Fashion Week will gather over 80,000 industry professionals, including thousands of overseas guests.
Shanghai will host nearly 300 immersive events across historic neighborhoods and landmark riverfronts, blending international art, local pop culture, family activities, and sports. Highlights include POP MART "POP SUMMER"IP-themed events," Van Cleef & Arpels "Poetry of Time" exhibition, LI-NING Streetball League, Yuyuan's "Fantasy Summer Night," MAP's "Shanghai Star" cruise, and the West Bund Grand Theater's "Wind & Waves" performance season.
Additionally, tax refund services with 14 language guides and electronic channels and the "Easy Go" one-stop inbound service platform via Alipay International will ensure a smooth and enriching stay.
Through "2025 Shanghai Summer," the city aims to strengthen its image as a vibrant, visitor-friendly destination while driving inbound tourism and consumption.
Media Contact:
Lu, +447463077291
media@shanghaisummer.com
Photo - https://mma.prnasia.com/media2/2727549/SHDW_Its_Go_Time.jpg?p=medium600
** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **
Prioritizing Korean Guests, 2025 'Shanghai Summer' Launches with 300+ Cultural Events & Enhanced Services
Exclusive Global Full-Chain Operations Secured—Turning Influence into a Capital-Grade Asset
With 360 Million Followers, Annual Live-Commerce Sales Could Reach $4 Billion
HONG KONG, Jan. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Khaby Lame, widely regarded as the world's defining TikTok creator, built his name on a universal language: silence. No captions needed, no cultural footnotes required—just clarity, humor, and that unmistakable gesture that says this is the simple way.
Now, that global influence is being elevated into something more permanent. Rich Sparkle Holdings (ANPA.US), a U.S.-listed company, announced today that it has completed the acquisition of Step Distinctive Limited, a core company associated with Khaby Lame. The move signals a shift from one-off brand deals to a structured, exclusive, full-chain, platform-style commercialization system—designed not merely to monetize attention, but to industrialize it.
A Once-in-a-Generation Traffic Gateway
360 million followers, one borderless content engine
Khaby Lame's rise is unusual not because it's fast, but because it travels. His content—minimal, wordless, instantly readable—does what most internet fame cannot: scale across languages and cultures without translation.
Today, his global following totals 360 million across platforms, making him one of the rare creators who can drive attention in multiple major regions at once. Industry observers describe him as a "global-tier traffic entrance"—a scarce asset in the age of content commerce.
Not Just a Partner—A Controlling Shareholder
When traffic aligns with ownership, the incentives lock in
What's drawing heightened market attention isn't only the acquisition—it's Khaby Lame's positioning inside the company structure. According to disclosed information, Khaby Lame will become a controlling shareholder, upgrading his value from "influence" to a core equity-level asset.
Analysts see this as a powerful alignment mechanism: short-term monetization and long-term brand building begin to move on the same curve—reducing volatility, increasing commitment, and expanding strategic imagination.
From "Viral Moments" to "System Conversion"
Why the $4B annual sales outlook is a model, not a slogan
The cooperation's headline expectation is bold: Khaby Lame's fan-based commercialization could generate more than $4 billion in annual sales.
Market participants note that this forecast is not simply a function of follower count. It rests on a closed-loop conversion architecture:
- Top-tier global exposure that creates massive conversion potential
- Exclusive full-chain execution, spanning content planning, paid growth, storefront operations, product selection and pricing, cross-border supply chain, fulfillment, and after-sales
- AI Digital Twin integration, enabling content output to scale beyond human scheduling and time zones
In other words, the $4 billion figure is framed as the output of a four-part engine—traffic + operations + fulfillment + technology—rather than a single breakout campaign.
Exclusive Full-Chain Control
Platform-style operations, not traditional MCN collaboration
Under the agreement, Khaby Lame's global commercialization will be executed through a single operating system. During the 36-month cooperation period, Anhui Xiaoheiyang Network Technology Co., Ltd. (a China-based livestream and content-commerce operator) will hold exclusive global full-chain operating rights.
The scope spans:
- Livestream and short-video commerce planning and programming cadence
- End-to-end TikTok Shop operations and conversion optimization
- Cross-border supply chain coordination, QC, fulfillment delivery, and after-sales
- Brand endorsements, ad productions, and visual content coordination
- Commercial development of an AI Digital Twin (Digital Twin)
Industry sources suggest this structure resembles a platform battle plan more than an influencer network arrangement—built for standardization, replication, and scale across overseas markets.
AI Digital Twin Authorized
Commerce content becomes a replicable production force
The agreement discloses that Khaby Lame has authorized the use of his Face ID, Voice ID, and behavioral models for AI Digital Twin development. Within a compliant framework, this enables multilingual, multi-version content production and opens the door to cross-time-zone, long-duration virtual livestream commerce.
Investors are watching two incremental upsides:
Three Core Markets, One Coordinated Push
U.S., Middle East, and Southeast Asia
The cooperation will prioritize three strategic regions: the United States, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. The plan includes a region-specific pricing structure and independent profit accounting, intended to match different consumer purchasing power, logistics costs, and compliance requirements—while improving efficiency and transparency in cross-border execution.
The Ceiling Isn't Just GMV
A path toward premium brands and co-branded IP
Beyond transaction-based commerce, the strategy points toward higher-margin, longer-cycle brand business. International brand advertising shoots and visual collaborations are expected to be centrally coordinated, alongside plans for co-branded IP product lines spanning beauty, fragrance, and apparel.
Analysts interpret this as a clear upgrade in ambition: not simply to expand GMV, but to convert Khaby Lame's global influence into priced, accumulated brand equity.
Industry Watch: Compliance and Delivery Define the Real Limit
As the model scales globally, industry experts emphasize that the final ceiling will be determined by local compliance (data authorization, ad disclosure, consumer protection), cross-border fulfillment and after-sales experience, and AI content risk controls and brand safety.
With region-level independent accounting gradually going live, future operating metrics and financial guidance disclosed by Rich Sparkle Holdings are expected to become key reference points for assessing whether this "system" can truly be replicated at scale.
** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **
Rich Sparkle Holdings Closes Acquisition of TikTok Icon Khaby Lame's Core Company
