Temu enters South African market, local e-commerce giants panic

Since its launch in September 2022, Temu has rapidly expanded in different regions around the world, including Asia, Europe, North America, and South America, and officially entered the South African market in January this year, launching a new site.

In South Africa, Temu's products cover a wide range of categories including clothing, home furnishings, and electronic products. Among them, low-priced clothing such as $ 10 tops and $5 motorcycle shorts are very popular among consumers. This phenomenon has brought considerable pressure to local physical stores and online retailers.

At the same time, many South Africans often worry about product quality, payment security and cumbersome return procedures when shopping internationally.

Based on this situation, South African giant Zando recently announced the establishment of its international e-commerce department, Zando Global, to launch a counterattack against the Chinese e-commerce platform Temu.

It is understood that Zando was founded in 2012 and is affiliated to Jumia Group (Africa's leading e-commerce platform). It has now grown into one of South Africa's largest online fashion and lifestyle platforms.

Zando pointed out that this policy is intended to ease the pressure faced by local physical stores and e-commerce platforms on the one hand , and to ensure that South African consumers can easily pick up and return goods on the other hand, providing them with a safer and more reliable shopping path .

Zando Global will provide physical collection points and 200,000 products, covering fashion, household items, gadgets , wigs , etc. It also promises to strictly check each item before shipment, allowing locals to shop without worries.

Faced with the threat of local e-commerce, Temu did not lose its composure. After all, its supply chain in South Africa is extremely strong, and Temu has always been committed to providing consumers with diversified products at extremely low costs , which is quite beneficial to middle- and low-income people. It can be said that the competition launched by Zando this time may face challenges.

In addition, a report released by African Business pointed out that Africans are facing high unemployment, high poverty and serious income inequality. Most consumers ignore quality issues when shopping and tend to choose cheaper goods. Moreover, Temu 's entry into the African market is actually a huge advantage for the region , because the platform can create new business for local companies and sellers, driving their economy to achieve higher growth.

Temu aside , US e-commerce giant Amazon will also launch multiple sites in South Africa this year .

In response to this phenomenon, Christian-Geraud Neema Byamungu, a China-Africa analyst, offered insights, saying that if Temu and other Chinese e-commerce platforms continue to improve product quality and shorten delivery time, the sales they bring to African retailers and small businesses will continue to grow.

With the entry of different platforms, the development of South Africa's e-commerce market has shown new vitality. However, it must be pointed out that if Chinese cross-border platforms want to "make a name for themselves" in South Africa in the future, they need to provide more cost-effective products and strictly control quality.

Temu

South African Market