Chinese Short Video and Livestreaming Platform Douyin Looks to Challenge Alibaba

Recently, Uniqlo commenced e-commerce livestreaming sessions on Douyin, TikTok’s counterpart for mainland China owned by parent company $ByteDance (FT0001)$ . Analysts contend that Douyin’s continuous introduction of leading fashion brands to its platform means that Taobao and Douyin are entering into more direct competition.

On the other hand, Uniqlo serves as a weather vane for the competitiveness and strength of China’s e-commerce platforms. Previously, in order to expand the category image of $JD.com (JD.US)$ for users, the e-commerce platform cooperated with Uniqlo and provided it with a series of exclusive preferential agreements. Although Uniqlo finally closed its flagship store on JD, it was enough to show the attraction of this brand to Chinese e-commerce platforms.

According to official data, as of the end of April this year, its GMV in the past year was 3.2 times that of the same period. Douyin is now the fastest growing e-commerce platform in China.