TikTok is aiming to quadruple the size of its global ecommerce business by 2023, but the US rollout of its TikTok Shop platform has been complicated. According to Bloomberg, the company is hoping to generate up to $20 billion in merchandise sales through TikTok Shop this year.

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Live commerce is the main focus of TikTok Shop, which also allows merchants to sell goods directly from short videos and TikTok storefronts without using an in-app pop-up browser for checkout. The US is the world’s second-largest social commerce market after China, generating $68.92 billion in sales this year, according to estimates from Insider Intelligence.

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In May, the Financial Times reported that TikTok had restructured its ecommerce business to focus on the US and the UK. However, as of March 2023, fewer than 100 US merchants were selling on TikTok Shop, per The Information. TikTok said in May that it moved TikTok Shop from alpha to beta testing in April 2023 to allow more merchants to join.

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TikTok is hoping to capitalize on the popularity of its platform among Gen Z, but it will have to overcome a combination of shifting consumer shopping behaviors, an economic slowdown, low uptake of live commerce, and consumer skepticism of in-app checkout—not to mention a potential TikTok ban. According to a December 2022 Morning Consult survey, more than 80% of US adults did not participate in a shoppable livestream last year, including 62% of adult Gen Zers. Additionally, an October 2022 SimplicityDX survey found that about three-quarters of US social shoppers ages 16 to 24 preferred to buy a product on a brand site.

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Whether or not TikTok can crack the US ecommerce market remains to be seen. For more information, check out Insider Intelligence’s latest report, “TikTok Commerce 2023: Should US Brands and Retailers Sign Up for TikTok Shop?”.

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Sources: https://www.insiderintelligence.com/content/tiktok-shop-crack-us-ecommerce-market