Some 7.8 million parcels will be delivered from Fuzhou, Fujian province over the next few days in the wake of Singles’ Day shopping spree, the Southeast Express reported on Nov 13, citing the municipal post office.

Couriers in Fuzhou will likely handle 1.5 million parcels combined during the stretch, which is double their workload in general, said the office.

Online sales on Alibaba's Tmall.com, Taobao.com and its overseas outlets topped 57.1 billion yuan ($9.34 billion) on Tuesday, setting a new Guinness record for the biggest online sales volumes by a single company within 24 hours.

Fuzhou, Xiamen and Quanzhou lead Fujian residents’ shopping frenzy with transaction numbers of 630 million, 430 million and 400 million yuan, respectively, said Alibaba.

The stunning sales numbers have also inflicted pain on the nation’s couriers with an avalanche of parcels.

Sources from the Fuzhou branch of Yuantong Express Co revealed that the company processed 20 million parcels on average following Nov 11, which is almost quadruple its normal amount of work.

Courier companies in Fuzhou all increased manpower to deal with the soaring business.

Yuantong’s branch in Fuzhou said it had doubled the number of both freight vans and staffers, who are taking shifts to make sure the parcels will be delivered on time.

The courier frenzy will likely to reach its peak on Nov 13, and last till Nov 16, according to an official with the ground service department of Fuzhou Airport.

Starting as an in-joke and an excuse for the unattached to celebrate – or poke fun at – their status in the 1990s, Singles' Day has evolved into an online shopping spree for all in recent years, as e-commerce operators stepped in to tap into the buying potential of bachelors and discount-savvy netizens.