(Photo: CGTN)

With the deeper pockets of China’s burgeoning middle class, the demand for more sophisticated moving services is rising. Some industry players are introducing new technology and new business models, looking to become movers and shakers in the market. 

Some companies are trying to digitalize this highly traditional and labor-intensive market. Lanxiniu is an Über-like app that links moving service providers and users. Nearly 20,000 active drivers take orders on the platform on a daily basis. 

Experts say the key of Lanxiniu’s business model is crowdsourcing labor while maintaining a centralized management. They believe this approach, based on internet thinking, will help the company further explore a potentially big market. 

Traditional moving companies are characterized by the ‘man-with-a-van” stereotype, with often unreasonable pricing and wide-ranging service quality. Now, some service providers are making upgrades to cater to a more diversified market. 

EZ Move is one of a growing number of companies modeled on Japanese companies, whose one-stop service takes care of everything, from packing and moving to putting everything in place at the new location. 

China's urban population reached nearly 810 million by the end of 2017, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. Analysts believe a huge potential market, coupled with the country’s ongoing urbanization drive, will continue to add fuel to the moving service market.