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Uzone.id — Since 2023, Temu has become a familiar app that internet users are used to seeing on their smartphones. Apparently, based on Appfigures data, it has become Gen Z’s most popular shopping app.
Temu was undoubtedly the world’s leading marketplace app, with 337.72 million downloads in 2023, and was the top free iPhone app for 72 days. These claims seem like a win for Temu, but of course, they’re a big threat to e-commerce platforms like Amazon.
Where exactly did Temu come from? How is it a threat to the king of e-commerce like Amazon?
Temu is a Chinese-based online marketplace with super low-priced goods. This app is gaining people’s attention by showing attractive products they didn’t know they needed–at super low prices.
PDD Holdings owns the e-commerce brand Pinduoduo, the other online retailer. That’s why Temu and Pinduoduo have one thing in common: both offer low-priced products.
Temu launched in the United States in September 2022 and expanded progressively throughout 2023 in North America, Western Europe, and Asia. It is now present in 49 countries, most recently launching in South Africa.
With its popularity spreading around the world–especially in the United States—it also became a threat to the most popular e-commerce site, Amazon.
The data suggests that downloaders are sticking around the app longer than others. Apptopia analysis revealed that the average user spent 7-8 minutes longer on the Temu app than rivals like Amazon, eBay, or AliExpress.
Temu also broke the record in US sales during Black Friday 2023, although data from Bloomberg Second Measure suggests that its sales declined during December and January—all the more reason to support advertising during the Superbowl.
That’s how Temu has become a serious threat to Amazon, eBay, and other platforms. Here’s the proof.
Temu’s ambitions for the US e-commerce market don’t end with the discount category. In January, the company reportedly held a recruitment seminar for Chinese suppliers who own warehouses in the US and Europe.
Amazon, of course, is fighting back by making its own pitch to Chinese sellers in December 2024 and announcing its plan to open an “innovation center” in Shenzhen.
When Temu takes buyers in the USA, Amazon tries to gain Asian sellers by promising them product launches, brand building, and digitization promotions in the Asia-Pacific region. Amazon wants to make sure its offer stays competitive. That’s why, in December 2024, Amazon dropped its seller fees for clothing priced under $20, a move widely perceived as a response to Shein and Temu in the category of low-priced goods.
That’s not the only thing; in the first week of December 2024, Amazon launched a low-cost online storefront featuring electronics, apparel, and other products. These low-priced online store products are priced at under $20.
The company said the new Amazon Haul storefront would mostly feature products that cost less than $10 and offer free delivery on orders over $25. These products are mostly shipped to US customers from a warehouse in China,
“Finding great products at very low prices is important to customers, and we continue to explore ways that we can work with our selling partners so they can offer products at ultra-low prices,” Dharmesh Mehta, Amazon’s president of worldwide selling partner services, said in a statement, quoted from The Guardian.
He added, “It’s early days for this experience, and we’ll continue to listen to customers as we refine and expand it in the weeks and months to come.”
So, Who Wins?
Amazon remains the top e-commerce giant in the USA, with Temu as a strong contender in the budget-shopping space.
Whether you’re all about Amazon’s reliability or you’re here for Temu’s killer deals, one thing is clear: both have positive and negative sides.
