How French retailers are using TikTok Shops for Social Commerce?

It seems that TikTok Shop seller centre is about to make its debut in France. In order to understand this development, it's important to revisit two key concepts: social shopping and social commerce. Until now, in Europe, we have been fans of social selling, which has allowed for individuals to window shopping on platforms in a native way. The main aim of such a launch is to increase impulsive shopping, and push purchases to customers with tools such as Instagram shop, as well as dynamic and shoppable content that is able to seamlessly redirect to your brand's store.

Whereas on the latter side, you have social commerce, which essentially refers to a 100% frictionless and integrated shopping journey directly on social networks, without having to launch a new channel and redirect users. This means that business are able to feature discovery, consultations as well as sell and accept payments for their store, without users leaving the app. The reason that this works, is because it's revolutionising the way that social networks are able to sell and offer services of online stores through a unified channel.

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TikTok Network: A Global Customer Success

TikTok Shop aims to transform the social media platform into a fully integrated e-commerce platform. In the United States, TikTok Shop has experienced rapid growth, generating about one billion dollars in monthly sales by October 2024. On Black Friday 2024, TikTok Shop reached 100 million dollars in sales in just one day. Between 2023 and 2024, revenue increased by 150%.

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User and Buyer Demographics

In the United Kingdom, 34% of TikTok Shop buyers are Millennials, and 48% belong to Generation Z. In the United States, 37% of Millennials have already made a purchase through TikTok Shop. If your audience is older, you might need to wait a bit before finding your target market there.

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Fashion, Beauty, Electronics, Food, and Preowned luxury

Fashion, beauty, electronics, and food businesses seem particularly well-suited for TikTok Shop. On the other hand, luxury and high-end brands are more cautious about venturing onto the platform/app due to a lack of suitable infrastructure. However, a category named "preowned luxury" has already emerged in the UK.

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Local Partnerships and New Markets

TikTok has started forming major partnerships with local brands to legitimize the approach, like Carrefour, which will integrate some of its products into TikTok Shop.

Lidl UK was making item packs for the TikTok audience. It worked very well. The brand was already well-present on TikTok and ran quite a few campaigns, especially for rejuvenation. And now, we're moving to the shop. This marks a big turning point for the market and marketplaces.

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Best practices to get started on TikTok Shop and Make Sales

To get started on TikTok Shops app, it's essential to consider whether this platform aligns with your brand.

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Affiliate Network

To succeed on TikTok Shop, establishing an online affiliate network is crucial. This involves creating attractive commission programs, sending items to creators so they can recommend the brand, and developing a genuine army of ambassadors who will regularly post content.

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Spark Ads

Visibility can be boosted through Spark Ads, which allows you to select the most compelling creator videos and promote them as paid advertisements. However, be aware that this feature might not be directly available in France, so you'll need to wait for its launch.

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Synergy with Live Shopping

One of the core attractions of TikTok shop is the element of live shopping that it offers. In simple words, this allows for an online store's team as well as their influencers to come together in the form of a digital event which enable staging, exclusive content and offers all alongside limited-time promotions. This format in particular permits for direct interactions with not only viewers but also boosts the reach for the live event through means of advertising.

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How TikTok Market Works

TikTok Shop is a marketplace integrated into the TikTok app. It permits businesses and content creators to showcase and sell products directly. In France, some French brands and creators already have access to a seller space on TikTok. The official launch is scheduled for mid-April, with tests in Italy, Germany, and France.

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The Three Access Points for Buyers

1. Live Shopping: Creators can host live sessions and place clickable products.

2. Videos with Purchase Links: Similar to Instagram's shoppable posts, videos integrate direct links to product pages.

3. Dedicated Tab: A cart icon allows customers to find the brand or creator's shop.

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Process for Sellers

Brands must create a TikTok Shop account via the TikTok Shop Seller Centre. They can add products manually or integrate them through services like WooCommerce or Shopify. Sellers can promote their products through videos, live sessions, and ads.

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Navigating VAT Responsibilities in TikTok's Marketplace

Understanding VAT responsibilities is crucial for sellers using platforms like TikTok. The discussion highlights the complexity of determining VAT liability, especially for French sellers.

When payments are processed through TikTok, the VAT responsibility may depend on the location of the goods—whether within or outside the EU. TikTok acts as a marketplace, and the financial flow, whether direct to TikTok or through a brand with TikTok taking a commission, influences VAT obligations. If the seller’s stock is outside the EU, TikTok may be responsible for VAT. This aligns with European directives on VAT collection, emphasizing the importance of understanding territoriality and financial flows in e-commerce transactions.

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Challenges and Opportunities

Perception Issues

In the United States, TikTok Shop has been criticized for an overload of promotional content and a low-cost market perception. To address this, TikTok has increased sales commissions and introduced a logistics service, "Fulfilled by TikTok," similar to Amazon.

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Opportunities for Brands and Creators

TikTok provides a great opportunity for brands and content creators. This approach allows for creators to monetize their posts by recommending products, turning TikTok seller, into an effective sales tool and marketplace.

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Some Early Adopters

French merchants like Respire, IZIPIZI and Cabaya are said to be the first online stores accessing TikTok Shops. Their brand image is absolutely perfect for this, since they mostly feature young people, and are always on top of the latest trends.

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Conclusion

TikTok Shop and its offerings to merchants are a major advancement in the field of social selling. With its full integration into the app, it offers new perspectives for online brands and creators in France and beyond. Challenges remain, but the opportunities are immense for those who know how to seize them.

TikTok and its social commerce channel is emerging as a major evolution in e-commerce, integrated within a highly engaging social media platform. After a stormy start in the US, the social media platform has managed to change its approach and convince prestigious brands to join. For French merchants, the challenge is not to miss this turning point. The arrival of TikTok Shop in 2025 be it in the UK or EU provides good grounds for transformation in buying habits and advertising strategies to boost organisational reach.

So what are you waiting for, it's time to hop on this big trend, and stay ahead of the competition!

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