TikTok has confirmed that it is testing a new shopping section «Trendy Beat» in the app where it offers products for sale that are shipped and sold by a subsidiary of its parent company, ByteDance. The new initiative, communicated in Financial Times, is being trialled in the UK, offering items that have been featured in popular videos.
The company said the new e-commerce initiative is not being tested in the United States, where it says it is currently focused on adding new merchants to its TikTok Shop offering that allows brands to sell items on the platform.
Although this new function Trendy Beat As mentioned, it is not yet being tested in the US, it could be done in the near future. TikTok requested a trademark petition in that country for Trendy Beat last month, indicating that testing could expand to the United States. A trademark petition lists clothing items such as dresses, scarves, hats, footwear, swimsuits, sleep masks, sweaters, skirts, shirts and suits among others.
The Financial Times reported that ByteDance's plan to start selling its own products on the video app is known internally as "Project S." The report says Project S leverages TikTok's knowledge of products that are gaining popularity on the app, which then allows Bytedance to acquire or manufacture those products. Bytedance reportedly uses a network of suppliers to produce these items.
The new feature sees TikTok look to challenge retail companies such as Amazon and Shein, as it signals a shift from TikTok's current e-commerce strategy, which is primarily presented through its TikTok Shop marketplace. With TikTok Shop, the company allows brands to sell their products directly within the application, but with this new feature, TikTok would be selling its own products. The new model sees TikTok operate an e-commerce model similar to how Amazon Basics and Shein promote and sell their own products.
The news comes as TikTok has been bringing brands such as PacSun and Revolve to the TikTok Shop, testing it in the US since last November. TikTok Shop has been successful in Asian markets but has struggled to gain traction in the UK, according to previous reports from Financial Times. As a result, it's no surprise that the company is choosing to test the new e-commerce initiative in the UK before possibly bringing it to the US.
It's worth noting that while TikTok continued to work on shopping features, competing apps are scaling back some of their e-commerce efforts after failing to gain traction. Instagram removed the store tab in January and later announced it would abandon its online shopping efforts. Facebook also closed its online shopping feature in August 2022.
Although TikTok is still in the initial phase of its e-commerce initiatives, the app already has a notable influence on users' purchasing habits. The phrase "TikTok made me buy it,” has become popular for the video app's ability to generate impulse sales. The term now has 7.4 billion views on TikTok and the hashtag has 59,3 billion. The new in-app purchasing feature would dramatically drive more of these sales by offering users easy and direct access to a discovery and purchasing experience.
