Image credit: Timmy Loen
Temu, the sister company of Chinese platform Pinduoduo, has now officially expanded to Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, France, Spain, and the UK.
Temu’s fast-tracked expansion to conquer Western markets comes less than a year after its launch in the US in September 2022.
The platform is currently holding grand opening sales for each newly added European country. Various reports suggest that Temu would enter Africa and Latin America soon. The company previously told Tech in Asia that it doesn’t comment on market expansion.
It should be noted that both Southeast Asian heavyweights, Shopee and Lazada, have been harboring European ambitions.
However, Shopee withdrew from Poland in January, marking its exit from the region as a whole.
Lazada, meanwhile, has yet to make an official launch in the region. Last year, industry observers suggested that Lazada could expand to France, Spain, and Poland – generally markets where AliExpress has a strong presence. It’s not clear whether Alibaba’s recent restructuring would speed up this process.
Temu, which operates under PDD Holdings, shares a similar trajectory with Shein, with both of the apps focusing on Western countries first and topping app charts while doing so.
See also: Why SEA should watch out for Shein’s top rival Temu
The pair’s abrupt rise has also started causing regulatory concern. The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission previously urged US Congress to shorten its leash on both Shein and Temu, emphasizing the two firms’ alleged malpractices.
Editing by Thu Huong Le and Jaclyn Tiu
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