Ultra low-cost e-commerce platform Temu, owned by PDD Holdings, has started selling to Japan, marking its first foray into the Asian market. The marketplace, the sister site of Chinese discount e-commerce platform Pinduoduo, ships everything from clothing to electronics and home goods, mainly from Chinese merchants to customers overseas at rock bottom prices. A drop-down menu on Temu’s website confirms Japan is one of the countries it now ships to. Temu and PDD Holdings did not immediately respond to a request for comment on its recent expansion or future plans. Temu’s model has so far proven wildly popular in the West, where many consumers have been battling inflation and a cost-of-living crisis. Since launching in the United States last September, the Boston-headquartered platform has since expanded to 22 other countries, sitting at or near the top of app download charts in many of them. Vion Zhi Voon Yau, head of research at consultancy Momentum Works, described Japan as an “attractive, affluent” market for Temu. “Whether Temu can adapt the same model effectively and navigate (Japan’s) local nuances remains to be seen,” she said.
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