Temu has overtaken eBay to take second place in the rankings of the world's most visited e-commerce sites. Keep in mind that only two years have passed since it was launched, thus becoming one of the fastest-growing websites ever. 

This statistic, released by Marketplace Pulse, states that Temu is the only e-commerce company on the top 10 list created in the last decade.

The big players in the global e-commerce sector are well established, and the landscape has not changed significantly in recent years. Shein, Temu's often-compared rival, is close to entering the Top 20.

According to data from SimilarWeb, Temu.com receives nearly 700 million monthly visits. Only a quarter of that figure comes from visits in the U.S. - Temu operates in 79 countries.

By comparison, Amazon.com attracts 2.7 billion visits, almost all from U.S. users. Although it initially sold only in the U.S., Temu is now a global retailer, with the U.S. accounting for only a small part.

Temu is soaring 

PDD Holding, owner of Temu, has closed fiscal 2023 with double-digit sales and profit growth. Following the release of the results, the company's shares have risen 15% in value.

PDD Holding, the Chinese group that owns the Temu marketplace, closed the 2023 financial year with a turnover of 247.639 billion yuan (31.6 billion euros), almost double the previous year's figure. Shortly after reporting its results, the company's shares rose 15% in value on the stock exchange, where it has been listed since 2022.

The company's profit has soared to almost double the net result in 2021. Specifically, PDD Holding earned 60.026 billion yuan (€7.6 billion) at the close of 2023, compared to the 31.538 billion yuan (€4 billion) the company earned the previous year.

Although the group has maintained its strategy of not breaking down sales by business line, which makes it impossible to know the weight of Temu in the group's revenues, PDD Holding's platforms, which also include Pinduodo, represent 153.54 billion yuan (19.6 billion euros), compared to the 94.098 billion yuan (12 billion euros) it earns under the heading of “transaction services”.

The post Temu is now the second most visited e-commerce site in the world! appeared first on Cross-Border Magazine.

Temu has become one of the world's leading marketplaces, and its expansion into Europe is a major event that could potentially forever change the way e-commerce is done inside the EU.  

That’s why Cross-Border Magazine reached out to Temu to get their official take on their European expansion, learn more about their short to mid-term plans, and, overall, provide you, our beloved readers, with keen insights into this powerful and trend-setting marketplace. 

These are our 10 essential questions to figure out Temu's plans for Europe. Let us begin!

Temu’s short-term plans for Europe: Please explain your main goals for the next 5-6 months, the main markets you wish to expand into, and why?

Temu Europe: Temu entered its first European markets in April 2023. As of June 2024, we serve customers in all 27 European Union member states and the U.K. We are also in Switzerland, Norway, Georgia, Ukraine, Iceland, Andorra, Serbia, Armenia and Moldova.

We are still a newcomer to Europe and at this early stage of our operations, our primary goal is to understand our customers' needs better so we can tailor our services to meet those needs more effectively.

Please tell us a bit about which one you feel is Temu’s main competitive advantage? 

Temu Europe: Temu operates a direct-from-factory online marketplace that connects consumers across more than 70 markets globally with cost-efficient manufacturers, offering general merchandise at competitive prices. Our mission is to empower consumers from all walks of life with access to quality, affordable products.

We pioneered a fully managed supply chain model that helps manufacturers sell directly to consumers without going through layers of intermediaries. 

For customers, this means shopping at wholesale prices without middlemen markups and other hidden costs. This direct connection also provides manufacturers with unprecedented intelligence about market demand and trends, enabling them to improve their product development and production planning.

This helps pinpoint and serve customer needs more accurately while reducing wasteful manufacturing that ties up resources.

Which business verticals is Temu aiming for in Europe?

Temu Europe: Temu began serving customers in Europe in April 2023, offering general merchandise at competitive prices. We offer everything from home and kitchen essentials to pet and gardening supplies.

Our customers come from all walks of life and different income levels. They all value the increased options for affordable, quality merchandise that Temu offers.

Which other marketplaces do Temu feel are a direct competitor? 

Temu Europe: We welcome competition - but don’t spend time focusing on them. What we focus on every day is delivering great prices, great selection, and great service.

For Temu, our mission is to make online shopping accessible, affordable, and enjoyable for our customers. We believe that by widening consumer access to quality, affordable merchandise, more people can live to their fullest potential and not be held back by financial constraints. 

What will be Temu's returns policy for the EU market? 

Temu Europe: At Temu, we take customer satisfaction very seriously, and our customers can shop with peace of mind on Temu with our 90-day money-back guarantee for items that are not as described, are damaged, or do not arrive. If customers have any issues with the quality of the products, they can contact our 24/7 customer service to apply for a refund.

What are the delivery times that Temu is aiming for inside the EU? 

Temu Europe: Under normal circumstances, most packages arrive within 5-14 days, while items from local warehouses usually arrive sooner.  We are constantly working with our logistics partners to optimize the entire shipping process to ensure that our customers enjoy fast and reliable deliveries. 

How is Temu handling logistics in Europe?

Temu Europe: Temu transports goods via land, air, and sea, depending on the destination market, product type, and logistical efficiency.

Under our fully managed model, manufacturers send their merchandise to designated third-party warehouses in the country of origin upon receiving orders from the customer.

In Europe, we are enabling qualified merchants to handle their own logistics fulfilment from local warehouses, which reduces delivery times and allows for a wider selection of merchandise.

Does Temu believe in localization for each nation inside the EU, or do you plan to treat the whole region as a big market? 

Temu Europe: As a newcomer to the EU markets, we have been actively adjusting our business practices to align with local practices and preferences. At the same time, demand for quality and affordability is a universal desire among customers across the whole region, and indeed, the world. 

Please describe your target audience in Europe.

Temu Europe: Our customers come from all walks of life and different income levels. They all value the increased options for affordable, quality merchandise that Temu offers.

Segmenting by the usual demographics (age, gender) or geography do not fully capture the complexity of needs and wants. For example, a consumer may be willing to pay a premium for fine foods but is happy with basics for clothes. 

Our goal thus is to meet these varied needs with the best possible combination of price and quality, by streamlining the traditional supply chain and removing a lot of the extraneous costs and inefficiencies.  

Finally, is Temu planning to implement any form of AI support?

Temu Europe: We are open to employing advanced technologies if it can help us better serve our customers. For example, we deploy technology to complement our team in monitoring our platform for irregularities and potential infringements. This helps us become more effective at policing our platform and make sure that consumers can shop with peace of mind. 

The post Discover Temu's expansion into Europe and its short-term plans!  appeared first on Cross-Border Magazine.