Is Developing Physical Stores Still Relevant in the Age of Livestream Shopping?

In today’s era of livestream sales, do physical stores still play a crucial role in shaping the shopping experience for customers?

Summary:

• The livestream trend continues.
• Is the importance of physical stores wavering?
• Building flexible and diverse business strategies.

Livestream shopping has been a prominent trend in online commerce for years, especially since its boom in China in the mid-2010s. Since then, livestreaming has rapidly evolved alongside e-commerce, reaching over $420 billion in transactions last year.

In Vietnam, with the introduction of livestreaming features on e-commerce platforms, the competition among brands, businesses, and retailers in the online streaming space has begun. According to Meta, shared with business technology partners like Haravan, livestream sales quickly accounted for 9% of total e-commerce revenue in Vietnam in 2023.

TikTok Shop, launched in Vietnam in mid-2022, has quickly emerged as a major e-commerce platform with the development of “Shoppertainment.” According to TikTok reports, by the end of November 2023, nearly 3 million small and medium-sized enterprises were active on the platform.

Recently, a TikTok channel in Vietnam confirmed sales of 75 billion VND on March 2nd through a 13-hour livestream event, selling nearly 100 products from 50 brands across various categories.

In today’s age, consumers no longer necessarily need to travel across town or spend half an hour to reach a store and choose products. Instead, they can comfortably stay at home, open their smartphones, watch livestreams, and quickly make purchases based on their emotions. The question for modern businesses is, are physical stores still as important as before?

Though livestreaming has become a powerful trend in online business, physical stores still offer advantages that are hard to replace. This is something that businesses need to consider.

The era of livestreaming continues Livestream shopping has become a billion-dollar industry in China for many years since its explosive growth in the mid-2010s. Since then, livestreaming has rapidly developed alongside e-commerce, reaching over $420 billion in transactions last year.

In Vietnam, since e-commerce platforms introduced this feature, the competition among brands, businesses, and retailers in the online streaming space has begun. According to Meta, shared with business technology partners like Haravan, livestream sales quickly accounted for 9% of total e-commerce revenue in Vietnam in 2023.

TikTok Shop, launched in Vietnam in mid-2022, has quickly emerged as a major e-commerce platform with the development of “Shoppertainment.” According to TikTok reports, by the end of November 2023, nearly 3 million small and medium-sized enterprises were active on the platform.

Recently, a TikTok channel in Vietnam confirmed sales of 75 billion VND on March 2nd through a 13-hour livestream event, selling nearly 100 products from 50 brands across various categories.

In today’s age, consumers no longer necessarily need to travel across town or spend half an hour to reach a store and choose products. Instead, they can comfortably stay at home, open their smartphones, watch livestreams, and quickly make purchases based on their emotions. The question for modern businesses is, are physical stores still as important as before?

Is the importance of physical stores wavering? However, according to analysts, livestreaming cannot completely replace the direct connection with customers that physical stores provide. Physical stores allow customers to interact directly with products and receive advice from sales staff. This helps create a more authentic and engaging shopping experience for customers. Through directly viewing products and experiencing their quality, customers will have higher confidence in the store and its products.

Physical stores also help create a social interaction space between customers and salespeople, providing opportunities for connection and networking for both parties. Some physical stores even serve as important “faces” of the brand.

In the luxury fashion segment, major fashion brands like Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Dior, Chanel, etc., continually upgrade the shopping experience for VIP customers, from layout design to product display, with a strong artistic sense.

Building flexible and diverse business strategies However, in today’s recessionary period, businesses need to pay attention to and develop flexible and diverse business strategies to ensure survival and growth.

Combining physical stores and online sales is the key to development in today’s environment, rather than choosing one over the other for development. To take advantage of both forms of business, businesses should combine physical stores and online sales to meet the diverse needs of customers. Additionally, to attract and retain customers, unique and attractive shopping experiences should be created at physical stores, combined with appealing shopping programs (such as promotions and incentives).

With the “Le Bleu” project, the Jacquemus brand has collaborated with Selfridges to create a “bathroom space” to display iconic Chiquito and Bambino bags in an eye-catching manner. CHAUTFIFTH, a Vietnamese handbag fashion brand, raised 10 billion VND with a 20% stake on Shark Tank Vietnam season 6, also focusing on visual experiences in stores, similar to successful approaches adopted by Korean brands like Gentle Monster and Tamburins.

In the age of livestream shopping, physical stores still play a crucial role and can develop in the context of economic decline, as long as businesses know how to utilize and combine various business forms flexibly and creatively.