TikTok is planning to open US fulfillment centers, hints at e-commerce plans

Social media giant TikTok is heating up competition in the U.S. A new report indicates the Chinese-owned platform is setting up its own product fulfillment centers in America to expand into the e-commerce space.

The company posted several job openings on LinkedIn, seeking out industry veterans in Seattle and Los Angeles to support the new warehouses.

“By providing warehousing, delivery, and customer service returns, our mission is to help sellers improve their operational capability and efficiency, provide buyers a satisfying shopping experience and ensure fast and sustainable growth of TikTok Shop,” the company wrote in one job listing.

In Southeast Asia, TikTok has already found success in e-commerce shops. Axios reported this move to build out its own U.S. e-commerce supply chain could give them more control and boost their profits around the world.

This news comes just days after the platform’s parent company ByteDance reported a loss of more than $7 billion in 2021, as TikTok spent lots of cash pushing for more growth.

The platform now has more than 1 billion users. Its unprecedented expansion and popularity has taken a toll on well-established social giants like Facebook and Instagram, which have had to roll out copycat algorithms to keep up.

Analysts say TikTok going big on e-commerce in the U.S. will be an expensive endeavor, but it will allow them to go head-to-head with established competitors such as big box and online retailers Amazon and Walmart.