The ByteDance-owned social media startup has told partners, including retailers and creator agencies, in recent weeks to prepare to set up TikTok shops in both countries, according to people familiar with the matter. The rollout is smaller than initially envisaged, but the company is working to open portals in other parts of Europe next year, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing privacy concerns.
A TikTok spokesperson declined to comment on Shop's plans for Europe but said the company “continues to experiment with this new commerce opportunity to support businesses of all sizes and empower our community to discover and engage with products they love.”
TikTok Shop employs about 40 people in Spain, making it the company's largest e-commerce hub in Europe, according to a person familiar with the matter. The company is also hiring Spanish-speaking staff in cities such as Madrid and London for a range of roles from logistics to compliance to Shop strategy, according to the company's job site.
The company's plans for a smaller European debut may signal it is trying to expand its influence without attracting more scrutiny from regional authorities. The EU's General Court has ruled that Chinese social media platform TikTok cannot escape new laws aimed at reining in big tech companies, and regulators are investigating whether TikTok created features potentially harmful to children.
TikTok had originally planned to launch Shops in Spain, Germany, Italy, France and Ireland earlier this year, but delayed the expansion to focus on the United States. Bloomberg News It was reported in May.
The United States remains TikTok's most important market, with 170 million monthly users, and the company is fighting divestment or ban laws by staking deep roots in the local economy. The company plans to increase its U.S. merchandise sales tenfold to $17.5 billion this year. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has said he won't ban TikTok if he wins the election.
TikTok Shops, which combines addictive video content with visual fashion impulse shopping, is the app's fastest-growing feature. Its combination of eye-catching videos, popular influencers and authentic commerce sets it apart from rivals like Instagram and YouTube and paves the way for the company to take on Amazon.com Inc.
ByteDance's best and brightest are heading up the TikTok shop. Bob Kang, who built Douyin's e-commerce business from scratch, oversees the global shop, mainly in the U.S. Kevin Chen, who ran ByteDance's news app Jinri Toutiao, is now in charge of the shop in Europe. The two executives will have to compete in those markets with other popular e-commerce services, including Shein and PDD Holdings' Temu.
Uploaded by Liza Shireen Koshy
