TikTok Shop forecasts record UK sales this Christmas as ecommerce investments take hold

The news: TikTok Shop is gearing up for a busy holiday season in the UK. The platform expects this Christmas to be “its biggest retail moment yet” thanks to surging growth in livestream and ad sales.

• TikTok expects UK ad revenues from retail and ecommerce brands to jump 58% YoY in Q4.
• The platform is preparing for millions of consumers to shop via livestream commerce in November and December and anticipates triple-digit Black Friday growth.

Across the pond: TikTok is equally optimistic about its chances in the US, where it’s embedding commerce more deeply into the user experience.

• The platform is testing an integration that makes it easier for creators to add affiliate links from the likes of Amazon, Walmart, and Rakuten to their posts. That makes it easier for users to shop—and for creators to earn commissions—and could make TikTok a more valuable sales and traffic driver for brands.
• TikTok Shop is also hoping to win over holiday shoppers with its “Brand Palooza” campaign. It features steep discounts on top brands like Benefit Cosmetics and TikTok Live shopping events hosted by creators and celebrities such as Nicki Minaj.
• Early results are promising: Sales in the first two weeks of November were up 213.2% YoY, per Earnest Analytics.

Looking ahead: With a US TikTok ban looking less likely, the platform has more breathing room to invest in its ecommerce business and will likely see an influx of retailers and advertisers anxious to capitalize on its ability to mint trends and drive sales.

At the same time, parent Bytedance’s slowing ecommerce growth in China is fueling the search for new markets: TikTok is recruiting merchants in Spain and Ireland ahead of a broader push into Europe.

Go further: Check out our reports on UK Social Commerce 2024, Consumer Approaches to Social Commerce, and Temu, TikTok, and China’s Ecommerce Players in Western Europe.

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