Chinese e-commerce platforms like Temu, Shein, and TikTok Shop are capturing more holiday spending in the US this year, as shoppers hunt for deals. These companies have outperformed other retailers this holiday season, according to an Earnest Analytics report that analyzed credit card transaction data.
Here's how Chinese sites performed:
- TikTok Shop, which debuted in the US a little over a year ago, saw sales more than triple compared to last year during the first two weeks of November.
- Temu, which launched in the US in 2022, saw sales rise 18%.
- Shein, which began operations in the US in 2017, saw sales grow 16%.
Meanwhile back in the US:
- Amazon has seen flat sales during the first two weeks of November.
- Target saw sales fall by more than 4%.
- Walmart is down 1.9%
- Best Buy is down 15.2%.
- Nike and Under Armour are down a whopping 19.9% and 24.3% respectively.
Not all US brands are doing poorly though:
- Victoria's Secret is up 9.6%.
- Chewy is up 5.5%.
- Abercrombie & Fitch is up 3.6%.
US retailers just simply can't beat direct-from-China marketplaces on price, although Amazon is certainly trying with the recent launch of its Haul marketplace.
Jason Goldberg, chief commerce strategy officer at Publicis Group, told Modern Retail:
“Temu, Shein and TikTok Shops have created somewhere between $50 billion and $100 billion worth of consumer demand in the U.S., and they’re fulfilling it. Haul is Amazon’s attempt to try to get some of that demand that it missed out on without eroding their current, much bigger, more important e-commerce business.”
Salesforce said it expects roughly one in five online purchases in the US, the UK, Australia, and Canada to be made through Shein, Temu, TikTok Shop, and AliExpress this year.