TikTok Plans a New E-commerce Initiative as a Competition to Amazon & Shein
TikTok was introduced in the year 2016. Byte Dance-owned TikTok is a short-form video hosting service from China. Videos uploaded by users are hosted on the platform, and they can be anything from three seconds to ten minutes long.
Ever since its inception in 2016, Byte Dance-owned TikTok has surpassed 2 billion mobile downloads worldwide. Now, with its new initiative ‘TikTok E-Commerce’ aims to go after some of the well-known E-commerce giants like Amazon and Shein.
Trendy Beat – TikTok’s Answer to Online Shopping, but With a Unique Concept!
A subsidiary of TikTok’s parent company, Byte Dance, is shipping and selling the products that are being offered for sale in the new Trendy Beat shopping section of the app. The shopping area provides popular products like equipment for removing ear wax that has been featured in viral films.
Though the new Trendy Beat feature isn’t currently being tested in the United States, it might come soon. Last month, TikTok submitted a Trademark application in the US for Trendy Beat, indicating that the test feature may soon be made available in the US. Clothing products such as dresses, scarves, hats, shoes, bathing suits, sleep masks, sweaters, skirts, shirts, suits, and more are listed in the trademark application.
Project S – For Selling Original Products on TikTok
According to The Financial Times, Project S is the internal code name for Byte Dance’s plan to begin selling its own products via the video app. According to the report, Project S makes use of TikTok’s knowledge of the goods that are becoming more and more popular on the app. This enables Byte Dance to either buy or produce those goods. According to reports, Byte Dance sources these products via a network of suppliers.
The new feature is a departure from TikTok’s current e-commerce strategy, which is mostly represented through its TikTok Shop marketplace. Also, shows that the company is seeking to compete with retailers like Amazon and Shein. However, with this new function, TikTok would be selling its own products instead of allowing brands to sell their products directly within the app as it does with TikTok Shop. With the new business model, TikTok will operate an online store in a manner like to how Amazon Basics and Shein market and provide their own best-selling products.
What Are the Chances of TikTok Competing with Other E-commerce Players?
The announcement comes at a time when TikTok is integrating companies like PacSun and Revolve for TikTok Shop, which has been undergoing testing in the United States since last November. Although TikTok Shop has found success in Asian countries, it has had difficulty taking off in the U.K.
Although TikTok’s e-commerce activities in the United States are still in their early stages, the app has a considerable impact on users’ purchasing decisions. By providing consumers with quick and easy access to shopping and discovery experiences, the new in-app shopping function would significantly increase the amount of these sales.