Sold millions of units in just three years! On par with Philips in Southeast Asia, he has truly mastered brand globalization.

If a few years ago, someone said that a new brand could break the long-standing monopoly of international giants like Philips in the Southeast Asian home appliance market within just a few years, most people would probably be skeptical.

However, Simplus's rise has truly taught the entire industry a lesson.

During the 2023 Double 11 sales promotion, Simplus's single-day sales exceeded US$1 million. During the same period, it ranked first in home appliance sales in TikTok live rooms, and ranked second only to Philips in the small home appliance category on Shopee. In 2023 as a whole, the brand's sales tripled and it became profitable.

Image source: acv

According to Kalodata data, in July this year alone, Simplus's TikTok Shop Thailand store achieved a monthly GMV of US$887,900, while its Philippines store also reached US$615,700 in July.

In the highly competitive Southeast Asian market surrounded by giants, how exactly did Simplus, as an emerging small home appliance brand, achieve a breakthrough from zero to one and attain such remarkable results in a short period of time?

Image source: Simplus

Targeting Southeast Asia's consumption upgrade opportunities and breaking traditional shackles

The emergence of Simplus can be said to be an attempt based on long-term observation of the Southeast Asian market.

Brand founder Jack Zhang previously served as CEO of Lazada Thailand and has years of experience in the Southeast Asian e-commerce market. This experience gave him a different understanding of the Southeast Asian market.

He saw two core opportunities: first, Southeast Asia has a population of over 600 million, of which more than 50% are young people under 30, and purchasing power is rising rapidly; second, there is an obvious supply gap in this market. Young consumers are beginning to pursue a better quality of life, but there is a lack of small home appliance brands with reasonable prices and designs that match young people's aesthetics.

Image source: Simplus

Why choose small home appliances? Jack Zhang's approach is to 'find the greatest common divisor.'

Southeast Asian countries differ greatly in religion, language, and culture, with varying preferences in clothing and makeup, but demands for kitchen appliances, cleaning appliances, and personal care products are relatively uniform. In addition, China's mature small home appliance industry chain enables rapid product development and scaled production.

In 2021, Simplus was officially founded in Thailand. The brand name comes from the combination of Simple and Plus, meaning 'simple but not simplistic.'

Image source: Simplus

The 'localization war' on TikTok

Simplus's approach on TikTok can be summarized in three keywords: first-mover positioning, localized content, and closed-loop omni-channel.

First-mover advantage is the first step. In November 2022, Simplus became the No.1 in sales in TikTok's home appliance live streaming category. From March 2023 to now, it has continued to rank at the top. (Southeast Asia data)

By seizing the top position at the early stage when TikTok's Southeast Asian e-commerce was just gaining momentum, the traffic dividend and brand awareness accumulation it brought are difficult for latecomers to replicate.

Image source: kalodata

But positioning was only the starting point. What truly enabled Simplus to stand firm is its ability to 'create content like a local brand.'

In an exclusive interview with FastData, founder Jack said bluntly that Simplus mainly targets Gen Z young people who grew up in a social media environment. Their aesthetics and requirements for product design are more internationalized — young people in Thailand and Vietnam prefer Japanese and Korean styles, while young people in the Philippines prefer European and American styles.

This differentiated aesthetic insight is directly reflected in its content and product strategies.

Image source: TikTok

For example, in the Philippines, Simplus collaborated with Donny Pangilinan, a highly influential local celebrity, to quickly build brand awareness through his massive fan base. However, their cooperation was not as simple as shooting an endorsement poster; it was deeply integrated with TikTok's interactive features.

By setting up mechanisms such as topic discussions and repost-based lucky draws, they built up hype in advance, gathering fans' attention first. When Donny actually started streaming on TikTok, traffic naturally came in.

Image source: TikTok

In terms of the content matrix, Simplus built a combination of short videos and live streaming. It showcased product functions through short videos set in home life scenarios, and then drove conversions through real-time interaction in live rooms.

This approach has been especially effective for its Philippine store. Looking at data from the past 30 days, live streaming contributed 52% of the total transaction value of Simplus's Philippine store, short videos contributed 42%, and the remaining less than 6% came from other channels such as product cards.

Image source: kalodata

And Simplus's investment in live streaming truly lives up to this share. A look at the live streaming records of their Philippine account reveals a striking feature: astonishing duration.

In these days of late August, almost every day featured a long live stream lasting 16 or 17 hours, starting from a bit past 7 a.m. and continuing until near midnight. Most sessions drew between 15,000 and 30,000 views, and the transaction amount per session ranged from six or seven thousand dollars at the low end to over ten thousand at its peak.

Image source: kalodata

Looking at the live content, Simplus does not simply introduce products; it reinforces the product's use value through live scenarios. For example, in dehumidifier live streams, hosts combine local life scenarios such as the rainy season and high humidity in Southeast Asia, demonstrate the product's operation effects, and increase viewers' purchase intent by answering real-time questions about noise, power consumption, applicable space, and more.

Image source: Kalodata

Simply put, this 'long-duration, high-frequency, scenario-based' self-broadcasting approach not only ensures the live room's activity and weight on the platform, but also maximizes conversion efficiency.

A report by Euromonitor also corroborates this: Simplus's sales nearly doubled between 2024 and 2025, driven by aggressive online promotion and spokesperson strategies.

Image source: Euromonitor

Final Thoughts

Simplus went from its founding in 2021 to firmly ranking second in Southeast Asia's small home appliance market in just over four years. This speed itself shows a key point: the dividend period for Chinese supply chains and brand operation capabilities in overseas markets is much bigger than many people imagine.

Southeast Asia's 600 million population, youthful population structure, rapidly rising e-commerce penetration, and home appliance ownership far lower than China's — these factors together form a highly certain growth market.

Today's Southeast Asia resembles China ten years ago — channels are being restructured, consumption is upgrading, and the brand landscape is far from settled. For domestic companies, rather than competing on price in the red ocean at home, it is better to go out and explore markets that are still growing. The advantages accumulated at home — products, supply chains, and operational capabilities — remain valid in Southeast Asia. The key is to take that step.