(Source: https://pltfrm.com.cn)
Introduction
Douyin (China’s TikTok) is no longer just entertainment – it is now the fastest-growing e-commerce engine in the world, expected to exceed ¥3.8 trillion GMV in 2025. For overseas brands, Douyin e-commerce offers unmatched speed, viral potential, and direct access to 800 million+ daily active users. Here’s exactly how foreign brands dominate the platform today.
- Why Douyin Is Now Essential for Overseas Brands
1.1 Interest-Based Algorithm Beats Traditional Search Unlike Tmall or JD, Douyin pushes products based on user interests – overseas brands with strong visual storytelling see 10–30× organic reach in the first week.
1.2 Highest ROI Channel in China Top-performing foreign brands achieve 8:1 to 15:1 ROAS through a mix of short videos and livestreaming. - Store Setup & Verification for Foreign Brands
2.1 Two Legal Paths in 2025 Path A: Douyin Global Flagship Store (no China entity needed, uses Hong Kong/Macau company). Path B: Mainland entity + ICP license (faster traffic weight).
2.2 7–15 Day Approval Timeline Submit trademark, business license, and brand authorization chain via global.douyin.com – approval rate for genuine overseas brands now exceeds 90%. - Content Strategy That Drives Sales
3.1 15-Second Hook Rule First 3 seconds must show product + price + benefit; brands following this format see 60% higher completion rates. 3.2 Livestream Blueprint Foreign brands running 4–6 hour daily streams with Chinese-speaking hosts routinely hit ¥1–5 million per session. - Traffic & Advertising Mastery
4.1 Douyin “Spark Ads” + Feed Ads Average CPC ¥0.8–2.5; overseas beauty and fashion brands report 400–800% ROI when boosting top-performing organic videos. 4.2 Interest Seeding via KOLs Seed 50–200 mid-tier KOLs (10k–500k fans) before official launch – creates instant algorithm trust. - Case Study: Italian Coffee Capsule Brand Explodes on Douyin
An Italian coffee capsule brand launched its Douyin Global Store in February 2025. By combining daily 5-hour Chinese-language livestreams with 100 mid-tier KOL seedings, they sold 1.8 million capsules in the first 60 days and reached ¥160 million GMV by month 8.
Conclusion
Douyin e-commerce for foreign brands in 2025 is the highest-leverage growth channel on earth – if you master visual content, livestreaming, and paid amplification.
PLTFRM is an international brand consulting agency that works with companies such as Red, TikTok, Tmall, Baidu, and other well-known Chinese internet e-commerce platforms. We have been working with Chile Cherries for many years, reaching Chinese consumers in depth through different platforms and realizing that Chile Cherries’ exports in China account for 97% of the total exports in Asia. Contact us, and we will help you find the best China e-commerce platform for you. Search PLTFRM for a free consultation! info@pltfrm.cn
