Nikkei Asia: China’s E-Commerce Giant Pinduoduo Enters US Market
(Image Source: TechNode)
Pinduoduo, one of China’s largest e-commerce operators, has “quietly launched” its US online shopping site “Temu” in its first major push overseas. Following the footsteps of Shein and AliExpress, Pinduoduo is hoping to compete for a slice of the massive US market, one that is currently being dominated by Amazon. However, the Shanghai-based company has been extremely discreet about its US expansion, making no public announcements or comments about the launch of “Temu” so far.
The Tencent-backed platform "Temu" launched on 1st September, listing items across a variety of categories such as clothing, jewelry, and home goods. According to Latepost and a Chinese online vendor, “Temu” will run a trial for 15 days from the beginning of September before commencing full operation in the US. The first selected vendors are those who have cross-border e-commerce experience.
It has been said that there are internal disputes related to this overseas expansion of Pinduoduo. In a conference call with analysts, Pinduoduo CEO and Chairman Chen Lei confirmed the expansion but did not specify the location. He is "sufficiently aware that overseas business will be challenging and the process would not just happen overnight.". The CEO also promised to “create our own unique value” and will not just “simply repeat what others have done in this field”.
"Overseas business is one of the opportunities that we see. At the same time, we also see that many peers in the industry are achieving good results. So we believe that it is a direction that is worth trying out." Chen said.
Pinduoduo is one of the few Chinese tech companies with a US listing that has not applied for a secondary listing in Hong Kong. According to the company’s latest report, it saw better-than-expected growth in the last quarter. Its total revenue reached 31.44 billion yuan ($4.55 billion), an increase of 36% thanks to rising sales of agricultural produce, fast-moving consumer goods, consumer electronics and beauty products.
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