(Yicai) Nov. 7 -- Some Chinese foreign trade companies have begun to shift their focus to the domestic market and took part in the annual Double 11 shopping festival, the world's largest e-commerce event, for the first time because of changes in the global trade environment.

Lantian Plastic Products primarily exported its products in the past, but it participated in Double 11 for the first time this year, Yang Moulue, legal representative of the Guangdong province-based firm, told Yicai. Last November, the focus was still on Black Friday sales following Thanksgiving in the United States, Yang pointed out.

Fortunately, Lantian Plastic logged good sales during Double 11, Yang noted, adding that its factory shipped 30 truckloads of goods on the first day of the event, setting a new record for daily shipment volume.

Considering the smooth expansion into the domestic market, Yang has set a Double 11 sales target that far exceeds previous Black Friday goals, while predicting that Lantian Plastic's annual sales will jump at least 20 percent from the previous year.

However, Lantian Plastic faced multiple challenges after deciding to expand into the domestic market, Yang noted, adding that the firm lacked understanding, with the product distribution system in China being much more complex than that in foreign markets, so its plant had to build its sales channels from scratch. In addition, foreign trade salespeople were unfamiliar with the Chinese market, so they had to learn, Yang said.

Unlike Lantian Plastic, which initiated domestic sales without giving up on exports, cookware merchant Zhang Yunfei completely abandoned foreign trade this year. Zhang, who primarily sells iron pots, has set a sales target of CNY500,000 (USD70,195) for Double 11, expressing confidence in reaching the goal after already achieving more than half.

Zhang's traffic investment in his store for Double 11 increased by about 30 percent this year, he said to Yicai, noting that he expects the move to result in a 50 percent sales growth.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev