The shopping feature of popular social media platform Tiktok is expected to thrive in the Philippines and the rest of Southeast Asia as they have the most number of active users globally alongside a vibrant e-commerce space, according to digital logistics firm Locad.
“Southeast Asia is such a promising region for brands who want to grow through multichannel selling,” Locad CEO and cofounder Constantin Robertz said in a statement on Wednesday.
Tiktok Shop allows merchants, brands and creators to sell products via the platform.
Locad recently teamed up with Tiktok Shop to provide logistics services. The firm automates storing, packing and shipping of orders.
Citing April 2022 data, Locad noted that four out of the top 10 countries with the most active Tiktok users were from the region. These are Indonesia (2nd), Vietnam (6th), Philippines (7th) and Thailand (8th). The e-commerce solutions company noted “no other major region in the world has more than two countries on the list.” Southeast Asian Tiktok users totaled 265 million. This was more than the 152 million users in the US, which topped the list. Citing an eMarketer report, Locad noted the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia were among the top 10 countries with the highest retail e-commerce sales growth.
“This presents a great opportunity for direct to consumer e-commerce brands in the region who wish to expand their sales channels to combat stiff competition and marketplace saturation,” the company noted.
“We at Locad want to empower e-commerce brands in Southeast Asia by providing them with the technology and infrastructure to unify the management of their products’ fulfillment journey,” Robertz said. Tiktok also earlier teamed up with e-commerce solutions provider Etaily to boost the online retail sector, targeting the younger generation who comprise over 60 percent of the social media app’s users.
Etaily sees this partnership enabling its brand partners to build their presence in the digital space. Among the upsides cited were community management, video production, live streaming and collaborations with content creators.