Liyia Wu, founder and CEO of ShopShops, joins the show today to discuss ShopShops, the future of online shopping, and how ShopShops is creating the space for the next generation of content creators and influencers.

“I believe the future of shopping is definitely live and video.” - Liyia Wu

Liyia states that they call themselves “Retail First” or “Retailtaimerce”, which is retail, entertainment, and commerce all in one as a platform that serves three sides of the market.

ShopShops tries to mimic the offline shopping experience for the online world: the sense of discovery via the physical spaces and environments.

Because of video calls, conferences, and the rise of live streaming and video forms on TikTok and Instagram, Liyia sees a user change behavior that’s acknowledging what video can offer.

Instead of a one-to-one experience, live streaming becomes one-to-hundreds. During livestream shopping or livestream entertainment, consumers start seeing relatedness to the person presenting and to other consumers in live chat features.

ShopShops’s influencers come from backgrounds of stylists, fashion designers, makeup artists themselves: “They very much have their own way to express their opinion about beauty.” - Liyia Wu

Just as Instagram and TikTok brought consumers in for entertainment purposes, ShopShops wants to focus on shopping - bringing consumers in to be entertained and learn something through that.

ShopShops is starting their expansion into the Western market by focusing on the vendor/seller side, having them start English versions of their live streams themselves in-store.

By the end of the year, ShopShops wants to open up the platform to more individual sellers who are willing to be hosts and curate their own content for the platform.

Currently, ShopShops charges a platform fixed fee based on seller’s transactions and in connecting hosts with retailers, they collect affiliate fees.

ShopShops currently curates which retailers and brands are platformed. Because of cross-border limitations in shipping and fulfillment, there’s a higher level of curation in the Chinese market. However, for their expansion into the U.S. market, ShopShops is open minded.

ShopShops shares insight, industry insights, cross-border insights, and analyzed data with their creators. This helps them identify and retain their customers.

On ShopShops’s female-focused audience: “I think women and men shop differently. Women shop for entertainment. Men shop for a purpose…” - Liyia Wu

ShopShops sees millennials as their primary focus in moving Westward - because of their mobile savviness, their quick adoption for what’s new, and their spending power.

If you have any comments or questions about this episode, you can reach out to us at [email protected] or any of our social channels. We love hearing from our listeners!