Stay procuring — a mix of leisure and e-commerce — is making its means from Asia into Western markets, with manufacturers more and more turning to interactive livestreams to promote merchandise and have interaction prospects.
However as platforms comparable to TikTok, Instagram, YouTube and Amazon make investments on this retail pattern, many are asking whether or not reside procuring will actually take off within the UK.
For Kelsey Krakora, a former bartender in Cleveland, Ohio, reside procuring has been transformative. Since launching her first reside gross sales occasion on Poshmark in late 2022, she now hosts a number of reveals every week, promoting round 100 vogue gadgets per stream — and producing over $1,000 (£773) in gross sales per occasion. “These events are inclusive, welcoming. You can shop in your pyjamas and there’s no need to head to the mall,” Krakora says.
A confirmed success in Asia
Stay procuring has lengthy been well-liked in China, the place platforms like Douyin (TikTok’s Chinese language counterpart) and Taobaohost hundreds of each day livestreams. Key opinion leaders (KOLs) comparable to Li Jiaqi, the so-called “Lipstick King”, have constructed enormous followings and drive tens of millions in gross sales.
This entertainment-driven commerce mannequin permits hosts to display merchandise in actual time, reply questions, and create a way of urgency with time-limited reductions. It’s confirmed particularly efficient in classes like vogue, cosmetics, and collectibles.
Based on VTEX, 45% of US customers have browsed or bought from a reside procuring occasion previously 12 months. The worldwide market is now estimated to be price $32bn and rising quick.
Will it work within the UK?
The image within the UK and Europe is extra blended. Analysts agree that cultural and infrastructural variations pose challenges. “Live shopping simply doesn’t scale in the same way outside Asia,” says Sucharita Kodali, retail analyst at Forrester. “In the US and UK, where consumers are used to trying things on in store and have easier access to physical retail, live commerce may have limited appeal.”
Jonathan Reynolds, Educational Director on the College of Oxford’s Institute of Retail Administration, agrees “Chinese influencers operate within highly sophisticated platform ecosystems that don’t yet exist here. Trust and audience engagement are built very differently.”
Nonetheless, manufacturers like Samsung, L’Oréal, Package Kat, and Nordstrom have begun working reside procuring trials within the US and Europe. Luxurious perfume home Amouage discovered success via 140 reside streams in China, promoting greater than 3,000 items — and has since introduced the idea to the US through a partnership with Nordstrom. “We now get live customer feedback during the stream, which we use to improve our products,” says Renaud Salmon, the model’s Chief Artistic Officer.
Past product demos
Guillaume Faure, CEO of reside procuring platform LiveMeUp, sees alternative in how-to content material. “Tutorials are hugely popular — showing viewers how to apply make-up, style an outfit, or arrange flowers. It turns shopping into a learning experience.”
Platforms are additionally encouraging creators and small sellers to undertake the format. Poshmark, eBay, and TikTok all supply reside promoting instruments, empowering entrepreneurs and influencers to promote on to their audiences.
But not each product works effectively on this format. Krakora herself admits she prefers shopping for denims in individual — “I’m tall, and I have specific cuts I know work.”
A double-edged sword?
Retail analyst Bruce Winder provides a observe of warning: “Consumers can get caught up in the moment. It’s immersive and exciting — but potentially addictive too.”
That pleasure is precisely why some see reside procuring as the subsequent main retail channel. “It’s not just a transaction,” says Manish Chandra, CEO of Poshmark. “It’s a conversation. It’s community. And it’s changing the way people shop.”
