Douyin Boosts Self-Operated E-Commerce with Launch of ‘Imported Supermarket’

A new store called ‘Douyin Imported Supermarket‘ has officially opened within the Douyin app recently. It is reported that this is a cross-border e-commerce business under the Douyin e-commerce platform, mainly focusing on self-operated operations.

Due to the opening of a new store, there are currently 25 items available on the shelves of Douyin Imported Supermarket. The products include face masks, cleansing patches, eye patches, and more. It is possible that more types of products will be added in the future.

The import tax of the goods has already been included in the price of the products. They are sent from domestic comprehensive bonded warehouses, inspected by mainland customs, and then delivered to consumers.

It is reported that the self-operated products have strict procedures from product selection to delivery. They are sourced globally by a senior procurement team, undergo supplier qualification review, go through customs clearance in compliance with regulations upon entry, and then enter the goods warehouse for inspection before being directly shipped by the official. Some products support quality traceability.

Previously, Douyin launched the cross-border e-commerce business ‘Global Preferred Imported Supermarket’, but it was not a self-operated model. In March of this year, Douyin released the ‘Global Preferred Imported Supermarket Investment and Cooperation Standards’ and officially launched the global preferred imported supermarket business, inviting cross-border brand merchants to settle in. In terms of categories, it covers daily necessities, alcoholic beverages and snacks, beauty and skincare products, as well as mother and baby products. The launch of Douyin’s imported supermarket marks its official entry into cross-border e-commerce with a self-operated identity, filling the gap in Douyin’s self-operated cross-border e-commerce.

SEE ALSO: ByteDance’s Douyin Is Expanding Self-operated e-commerce Business

TikTok’s decision to personally engage in cross-border e-commerce may open up a new growth path. Through self-operation, it can accelerate comprehensive management in terms of quality control, data, content products, and marketing strategies. This allows them to establish their own differentiated barriers and form strong consumer awareness within the user base. By partnering with the ‘Global Select Import Supermarket’ to create a ‘twin star’, they aim to build a more complete cross-border e-commerce ecosystem and compete for market share in domestic cross-border e-commerce.

Currently, the market for cross-border e-commerce is further expanding. On July 13th, spokesperson Lu Daliang of the General Administration of Customs stated that according to preliminary customs statistics, in the first half of this year, the advantages and potential of cross-border e-commerce in terms of “buying globally and selling globally” continued to be released, with imports and exports reaching 1.1 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 16%. As a new form of foreign trade, cross-border e-commerce has become a new economic growth point.

Apart from Douyin, domestic platforms such as JD.com, Taobao, and Tmall have all set up their own cross-border e-commerce businesses like JD International and Tmall Global. Among them, JD.com officially announced the results of its global network plan on June 7th last year: by June 2022, JD.com‘s overseas warehousing area had achieved a year-on-year growth of 100%. It can be seen that cross-border e-commerce has become a potential market for leading e-commerce platforms to focus on developing and expanding at present.