• by Colin Kirkland , February 6, 2025

TikTok Shop -- the social-media company's budding ecommerce platform -- is launching in Mexico this month, marking the ByteDance-owned social-commerce platform's expansion into Latin America and spurring sellers to invest in the region.

TikTok Shop first started inviting merchants to open stores on the platform in Mexico in January ahead of the start of transactions in February.

These merchants, with a locally registered entity, were eligible to sign up and be exempt from commission fees for the first 90 days of commercial activity.

Last month, TikTok said certain types of goods would be restricted in its Mexico Shop business, including jewelry, healthcare, maternity and baby products.

Orca, a social commerce company, was also the first company to sell a product on TikTok Shop in the U.S. and is now expanding its offices into Mexico, preparing for the platform's official launch.

Max Benator, co-founder and CEO Orca, announced the company's strategic expansion into Mexico City at Orca's SoCom event on Thursday in Venice, California -- the first dedicated social commerce conference in the U.S.

Benator and Orca co-founder Lauren Stevens believe that in the current market, TikTok Shop is the most effective social-commerce ecosystem available to marketers, brands, creators and sellers.

For years, TikTok has been attempting to translate its sister company Douyin's live-shopping successes in China, but has struggled to interest a significant number of users from Europe and the U.S. in the initiative.

Last year, for example, Douyin generated over $500 billion in product sales, while TikTok generated less than $4 billion.

However, the company made gains in the U.S. this holiday season, amassing over $100 million in single-day sales on Black Friday as well as a 165% increase in shoppers year-over-year, and showing newfound promise for its ability to compete with online retailers like Amazon, Temu and Shein.

Last year, TikTok Shop also recorded a sevenfold increase in gross merchandise volume (GMV) of between $7 billion and $8 billion in the United States -- its largest and fastest-growing market -- according to EchoTik, an analytics and data provider focused on TikTok.

The platform's expansion into Mexico comes at a time when its future is uncertain in the U.S. because of a sell-off bill signed by former president Joe Biden, then delayed by President Donald Trump, with the app's existence in the region now awaiting a potential new buyer.

To certify its use in other markets, TikTok Shop has launched in the U.K., with a host of automated campaign tools, as well as in Ireland and Spain, marking plans for a wider European expansion.

This article has been updated.