Livestreaming e-commerce platform East Buy today launched a paid membership service, a move that signals the company’s ambition to retain loyal customers and increase stable revenue. Customers are required to pay RMB 199 (approximately $27) to join the premium membership program, giving them a 12% discount on most of the platform’s private label products, 12 membership coupons for a year, and a coupon package with a value of RMB 66. Subscribers are able to withdraw membership if they have “any dissatisfaction” within a one-year validity period, the company told local media outlet Securities Times. The e-commerce retailer, originally an after-school education firm, achieved a net profit of RMB 971 million in the 2023 fiscal year largely thanks to its booming e-commerce business, compared to a loss of 71 million a year prior. [Securities Times, in Chinese]