Social network TikTok is taking e-commerce by storm and will launch a new feature, dubbed TikTok Shop — on Monday in France, Germany and Italy — allowing direct purchases in the app, the company said on Thursday.
TikTok Shop has been up and running in Spain and Ireland since last December.
Users will now be able to buy products through shopping links in videos and live content as well as an online store, all without leaving the app.
On the shop tab, customers will be able to search for “specific products, discover current promotions and manage their orders, while accessing personalised recommendations in the form of lists and interactive content with integrated shopping functionality”, TikTok said.
Outside the European Union, TikTok Shop is already present in a dozen countries, including the United Kingdom, Thailand, the United States and Saudi Arabia.
Several brands in France are supporting the launch, including bag manufacturer Cabaia and eyewear maker Izipizi.
People under the age of 18 will not have access to “content with links to TikTok Shop products”, the platform told AFP, saying that the shop would provide “proactive moderation”.
French lawmakers have set up a commission of inquiry looking into the psychological effects of TikTok on children and teenagers, with the network particularly popular among youngsters.
The arrival of TikTok, whose parent company is Chinese, in e-commerce is also of concern to numerous French retailers.
Leading French trade federations last week asked the government to take “immediate measures” to protect French companies from e-commerce platforms such as Temu, Shein and TikTok Shop amid fears that the latter are a source of “unfair competition” at a time when those fears are exacerbated by a wave of US trade tariffs.
