After several months of testing, TikTok has officially launched its e-commerce platform, TikTok Shop, in the U.S., where it has a user base exceeding 150 million.
This rollout includes several new features, such as a dedicated shop tab on the home screen, live video shopping, shoppable ads, and affiliate programs tailored for creators.
TikTok began testing its e-commerce efforts in the U.S. last November and has since expanded the program to include more vendors.
ByteDance, TikTok’s parent company, has also been experimenting with various shopping formats in other markets, including the U.K. and several Southeast Asian countries.
In a blog post, TikTok explained, “TikTok Shop empowers brands and creators to connect with highly engaged customers based on their interests, and it combines the power of community, creativity, and commerce to deliver a seamless shopping experience.”
Through TikTok Shop, creators can tag products, allowing users to easily purchase items directly from in-feed videos and live streams. Brands can create product portfolios that are accessible via their profile pages.
TikTok Shop features a dedicated tab, introduced in other markets in June, that allows users to search for products, discover items through recommendations, browse by category, and manage their orders.
Additionally, TikTok has established an affiliate program for sellers, enabling them to collaborate with creators on a commission-based model to promote and sell products.
In addition to hosting products on the platform, ByteDance offers logistics support through its “Fulfilled by TikTok” service, which includes a secure checkout system.
TikTok has long collaborated with Shopify to offer shopping solutions for businesses. The company also integrates with various e-commerce partners, such as WooCommerce, Salesforce Commerce Cloud, BigCommerce, and Magento.
For customer service, TikTok works with Zendesk, Gorgias, and 1440, while Printful, Printify, and NovaTomato handle print-on-demand merchandise. Shipping services are provided through WeeBee, Flowspace, and Easyship.
According to TikTok, over 200,000 sellers have already signed up for TikTok Shop, along with more than 100,000 creators who have joined the Affiliate program.
Earlier this week, It was reported that many U.S. users had started seeing the shop button on their app, but it primarily featured cheap or counterfeit products from China.
However, TikTok executives assured that over 90% of sellers on TikTok Shop are based in the U.S.
In the U.K., ByteDance is already selling products through a new “Trendy Beat” section on TikTok, which launched in June. According to the Financial Times, this section is seen as a potential competitor to Shein and Amazon.
In the U.S., TikTok is capitalizing on the popularity of trends like #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt, which has garnered billions of views.
The company faces stiff competition in the e-commerce space from Amazon and Shein, the latter of which is reportedly planning an IPO.
Last month, a report from The Information suggested that TikTok was considering banning third-party e-commerce links, but ByteDance denied these claims.
With the introduction of TikTok Shop, the platform may collect more user data, including financial information, shopping habits, and addresses.
TikTok emphasized that all U.S. user data is stored domestically and managed by USDS, a separate unit dedicated to overseeing U.S. data. However, this increased data collection could still attract scrutiny from lawmakers, many of whom have called for the app to be banned.
