Every time when I was asked:”Do you know any websites like Milanoo?”, without a second thought I answered:”Lightinthebox”. Likewise, when I saw someone looking for sites similar to Lightinthebox, “Milanoo” instantly popped up out of my mind and I just couldn’t help sharing what I know. The two websites are way too much about fashion and both are outstanding among all Chinese international online stores that offer clothing and accessories and other fashionable products. However, they do have differences and have their own pros and cons. The following Lightinthebox VS Milanoo comparisons may give you some inspiration.
Company Sizes & Founders
Lightinthebox is definitely much more famous than Milanoo on the global market as well as in the Chinese e-commerce arena. Lightinthebox (2006) was founded two years earlier than Milanoo (2008). Currently Lightinthebox has more than 600 full-time employees while Milanoo has about 300.
Headquartered in Beijing, Lightinthebox.com has a few branch offices across China, most of which are responsible for warehousing and shipping. The store was created by a group of talents led by Quji Guo, the former CSO (Chief Strategy Officer) of Google China. In terms of global credibility and company size, Lightinthebox is the biggest China-based B2C online shopping website of fashion products and consumer electronics. Anyway, its wholesale ranking is not so high.
With branch operation centers located in Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Suzhou, Milanoo bases its head office in Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province, although the company was registered in Hong Kong. Its founder, Wei Feng, was a clerk for a local government office in Chengdu. Before he quit the job, he was also doing part-time by running a small factory to manufacture and sell costumes for cartoons and animation characters.
Business Models
The business models of Lightinthebox and Milanoo are quite similar if not exactly the same. They both have their own contracted and cooperative manufacturers, warehouses, domestic product sourcing teams, overseas product trend research teams, customer services, models for displaying finished products and more.
Both of the websites are not purely B2B or B2C. Instead, their target customers are a combination of end consumers and merchants or resellers. The prices they offer are basically wholesale prices as they source products direct from suppliers or manufactures, even on single-piece orders.
Product Lines
The biggest difference between Lightinthebox and Milanoo, based on my knowledge, lies in the product lines they specialize in. Wedding dresses, bridesmaid dresses, evening dresses, prom dresses and other special occasion dresses the one of the most popular categories in the two online stores. But their quality standards, designs and prices are rather different. Lightinthebox focuses more on affordable high-end apparel and accessories while Milanoo has more budget-friendly fashion products to choose from. For instance, in addition to the vast array of cheap wedding dresses under $200 or even under $100, you can find a variety of superior wedding dresses priced between $200 and $400 at Lightinthebox.com. On the other hand, most wedding dresses for sale at Milanoo.com are offered at less than $200.
As for these major product lines, overall, Lightinthebox is better in terms of quality and designs. In particular, celebrity style dresses, shoes and handbags are extensively available on Lightinthebox.com. As both stores cooperate with various manufacturers for each product line, quality standards may vary slightly, according to Lightinthebox reviews and Milanoo reviews left by real customers.
Lightinthebox and Milanoo are also different in other product lines they have. Besides dresses for different formal and semi-formal occasions as well as daily wear, Lightintheobx carries a huge collection of consumer electronics, including cell phones, tablet PCs and a lot more cool electronic gadgets that are extremely popular around the world. However, Milanoo has nothing to do with electronics. Different from Lightinthebox, it is completely a fashion store selling dresses, handbags, shoes, costumes, lingerie, swimsuits, clubwear and more. Besides, cosplay costumes are equally hot to special occasion dresses there – as I mentioned above, Milanoo’s founder was running cosplay costume business before he created the website. In particular, Lolita costumes are one of the bestsellers on the site.
There is so much more to compare between Lightinthebox.com and Milanoo.com. This Lightinthebox VS Milanoo review is just a tiny part of my comparing jobs on the two China shopping websites. Just stay up-to-date on my latest updates to learn more!
For more details about the two companies, read: Lightinthebox Review & Milanoo Review. Or, visit Lightinthebox.com or Milanoo.com to take a look yourself.