Image: Annelise Capossela/Axios
TikTok plans to build its own product fulfillment centers in the US, creating an e-commerce supply chain system that could directly challenge Amazon, according to more than a dozen new job openings posted on LinkedIn in the past two weeks.
Why it matters: The move marks TikTok’s commitment to e-commerce as its next big revenue stream after explosive growth of its ads business.
- “By providing warehouse, delivery and after-sales returns, our mission is to help sellers improve their operability and efficiency, provide buyers with a satisfying shopping experience, and ensure rapid and sustained growth of TikTok Shop,” the company wrote in a job advertisement.
Details: According to the job postings, TikTok aims to build an “international e-commerce fulfillment system” that will include international warehousing, customs clearance, and supply chain systems supporting U.S. national e-commerce efforts and cross-border e-commerce efforts. The systems will eventually perform package consolidation, move goods from one stage to the next, and manage free returns.
- One Position, a Logistics Solutions Manager for a global fulfillment center, is hiring an associate in Seattle to plan and design fulfillment center and e-commerce logistics solutions that include movement of goods, order forecasting and inventory management.
- Another Seattle-based role is calling for the creation of a new fulfillment service center “from scratch.” The center, the post reads, “is a global team responsible for developing and growing our logistics solution” and will include TikTok Shop’s product fulfillment for its sellers by providing “storage, delivery and returns to customer service.” provides”.
- While this role explicitly calls for the development of fulfillment services for TikTok’s e-commerce logistics in the US, other roles relate to a team responsible for a global logistics and warehousing network.
Between the lines: For now, it doesn’t look like TikTok plans to build its own transportation unit like Amazon. The job postings imply that TikTok would work with providers to handle shipping, package consolidation, and transportation.
- A job description for a fulfillment logistics manager implies that TikTok, like Amazon, is trying to develop a free returns program.
Game Status: Building its own e-commerce supply chain could give TikTok more control and boost profits in the US and around the world.
- TikTok is currently exploring a QVC-like live shopping feature in the US ahead of the holiday season, which the Financial Times says would serve as a product recommendation tool for developers.
- TikTok began piloting a shopping feature in the US, Canada, and the UK last year via a deal with Shopify.
- The company also rolled out a separate live shopping feature in the UK earlier this year, but has reportedly struggled to get creators on board.
What you say: A TikTok spokesperson confirmed that in territories like the UK and Southeast Asia, where TikTok now offers e-commerce programs, TikTok aims to “offer a range of merchants offering a range of product options as well as delivery options.”
- The spokesman said the company’s “focus” remains on its currently active e-commerce regions.
The big picture: The meteoric growth of TikTok, which has already taken its toll on metas Facebook and Instagram, also poses a threat to companies like Amazon and Google that rely on intent-based search advertising to drive business on their shopping platforms.