China’s first allotment of J-Harden Wines, the libation launched by NBA star guard James Harden, sold out in a matter of seconds in a livestream on Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok.
The stream was held Tuesday night local time by Douyin star “Crazy Little Brother Yang,” with Mr. Harden also appearing. The first bottles were sold in pairs, with two bottles of the wine costing around $60.
After another person on stream asked how much wine Mr. Harden typically sold in a day, he said it was a few cases. The streamers wanted to show Mr. Harden how much they could sell, informing him that 5,000 orders had been prepared for the stream.
Mr. Harden asked them to “show me.”
In a matter of seconds, 5,000 orders were placed, 10,000 wine bottles in total. The elated Mr. Harden shouted “no way!” before rushing to confirm the sales, according to Chinese state-owned daily tabloid the Global Times.
Mr. Harden proceeded to release another 6,000 bottles for sale, which also sold out in seconds as 3,000 orders came in, according to the Global Times.
Video posted of the stream by X user Lance Teng shows Mr. Harden’s excitement at the rapid sale. Livestream shopping, akin to America’s QVC channel, is popular on Douyin.
More of the wine is now being shipped to China to restock; the 16,000 sold on Tuesday’s stream represented the first allotment of J-Harden Wines for the entirety of China.
J-Harden Wines launched for sale in the U.S. in summer 2022 and can be found at retailers nationwide with bottles of California Cabernet Sauvignon, California Red Blend, and Prosecco available.
“I’m incredibly proud of what we accomplished in our first year of J-Harden Wines, starting with massive success in the U.S. and now expanding worldwide. … As you’ve probably seen on TikTok and across social media, I’m literally doing cartwheels over the response we’ve seen for J-Harden Wines. I can’t wait to see what we accomplish in year two,” Mr. Harden said in a statement.
Douyin is not the only place Mr. Harden has made waves during his trip in China. At an event in Beijing recently, Mr. Harden blasted Daryl Morey, the general manager of his current team the Philadelphia 76ers.
“Daryl Morey is a liar and I will never be a part of an organization that he’s a part of,” Mr. Harden said, before emphatically repeating himself.
The two sides are in the midst of an ongoing dispute over Mr. Harden’s July trade request from the team. The 76ers recently ended their search for a trade partner for Mr. Harden, who has continued to hold out in the hopes of being shipped elsewhere.
Mr. Morey was also Mr. Harden’s general manager, albeit for the Houston Rockets, when he made comments in favor of the Hong Kong democracy protests in 2019.
This incensed the mainland Chinese viewing public and Chinese authorities, and led to NBA games being removed from the broadcasts of Chinese state TV outfit CCTV for more than 28 months, followed by a brief break for the NBA Finals in October 2020 before another 18-month blackout.
NBA games were once again shown on Chinese state broadcaster CCTV starting in late March 2022, according to Reuters.
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