The arrival of TikTok Shop to multiple nations is close: according to the South China Morning Post, the popular social network's e-commerce will be launched this summer in Spain, France, Italy, Germany, and Mexico, expanding its presence to 13 markets worldwide. 

According to sources familiar with the matter, the social network has already begun inviting sellers to test a beta version of TikTok Shop in these new markets before the official launch. However, the criteria for selling at TikTok Shop have been tightened. 

In the case of Mexico, sellers must have a locally registered entity and, in principle, are restricted from selling certain products such as food and jewelry.

TikTok Shop is available in the US, UK, Malaysia, Vietnam, Philippines, Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand. In 2022, as reported by the Financial Times, the company backed off and ultimately opted not to launch TikTok Shop in France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, seeing that the UK operations failed to meet internal targets and attract influencers.

In other markets, such as the U.S., TikTok Shop has gained strong traction. As reported by the social network, more than 500,000 were selling products on TikTok Shop (year-end 2023 data), more than double the number three months earlier. 

As of December 2023, TikTok had more than 15 million sellers worldwide, after adding more than 6 million in the second half of 2023, the company said in its first TikTok Shop Safety Report, published recently. TikTok has a global target of reaching $50 billion in gross merchandise value in 2024.

TikTok under scrutiny 

Meanwhile, TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance remain under the scrutiny of U.S. and European authorities. Last week they filed a lawsuit in a District of Columbia court seeking to block the bill passed by the U.S. Senate that will allow a nationwide ban on the social network if ByteDance does not disassociate itself from the network. 

The company had warned that it would take legal action in April after that law was passed. This legislation gave ByteDance 270 days to sell TikTok so that it would not be removed from the country's app stores and U.S. Internet services. The bill was approved by a 352-65 vote in the lower house and passed the Senate.

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TikTok retail operation was canceled in Indonesia to comply with the country’s decision to ban e-commerce transactions on social media platforms. The cancelation of TikTok retail in the region is a massive blog to the social media fastest-growing market country in Asia.

A few months ago, the Indonesian government announced the new regulation, which prohibits social media companies from facilitating sales of products on their platforms, on Sept. 28 in a bid to protect small businesses from e-commerce competition, accusing the popular apps and websites of predatory pricing.

The Chinese-owned video-sharing app said in a statement it will stop facilitating e-commerce sales in TikTok Shop Indonesia by 5 p.m. Wednesday.

Indonesia’s Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan said the ban aims to “prevent the domination of the algorithm and prevent the use of personal data in business interests" and "create a fair, healthy and beneficial electronic commerce ecosystem,” according to a statement released by the Trade Ministry when the ban was announced. 

TikTok retail is growing massively 

TikTok, owned by the Chinese group ByteDance, expects to reach 20 billion dollars (18.75 billion euros) in e-commerce this year, more than quadrupling last year's figures, when it invoiced 4.4 billion dollars (4.125 billion euros), according to Bloomberg.

The main explanation for this exponential upturn in its gross merchandise sales is the expected growth in Southeast Asia. In this market, TikTok is making a notable commitment, for example, in Indonesia, where now the social network will surely face considerable looses. 

TikTok's e-commerce platform allows customers to purchase products through links in the app during live broadcasts. They can also access marketplaces through a tab on the app's home screen to search and browse.

Beyond Southeast Asia, the company is also working to expand its sales in the United States and Europe. In fact, TikTok Shop debuted this month in the U.S. market with some 150 million active users.

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