Saks Shows up Fashionably Late to Raging TikTok Party

Nine months after Nordstrom, 15 months behind Neiman Marcus, and half a decade behind the U.S. debut of TikTok, and Saks — the self-titled “premier luxury eCommerce platform” — has finally arrived at the hippest party in town, at least as far as social commerce goes.

In announcing the belated debut of its TikTok page, Saks said it plans to use the site’s short-form video format to bring compelling digital content to customers that will give followers a fun and engaging way to experience the world of luxury fashion and beauty.

“TikTok continues to have a significant impact on the fashion industry, and we are excited to join this creative community and connect with our customers in a new and compelling way,” Saks Chief Marketing Officer Emily Essner said in the announcement, noting the retailer’s intention to continue to “innovate and elevate” its eCommerce offerings.

“[W]e are excited to introduce another touchpoint for our customers to discover on-demand style inspiration from Saks,” Essner added.

If You Can’t Be First, Be Better

Clearly Saks is entering a space where virtually all its direct rivals and almost every designer and luxury brand already have a presence and have long-since perfected the art of monetizing the outfits worn in 30- to 60-second videos.

It is also worth noting that Saks, which is so digitally focused that it was spun off from the flagship Saks Fifth Avenue physical stores, is only finding its way onto TikTok now, where over 1 billion users per month pop in on a website that gets more traffic than Google, Facebook, Netflix or Twitter.

Read more: TikTok Beats Google for Most Visited Site in 2021

After an initial drop of nine videos fronted by four content creators, the Saks TikTok page had collected about 1,500 followers, received 1,300 likes and had nearly 20,000 views in its first day.

For the record, Nordstrom has built up a following of 22,000 TikTok followers and 1.7 million likes since its May launch, while Neiman Marcus has 10,800 followers and 21,000 likes on the top-rated social media site.

By comparison, Walmart has been on TikTok since 2019 and has built up a stable of 1.1 million followers with over 6 million likes and has invested in advanced data technology that makes in-app purchases easy and seamless. Walmart has also used the platform and influencers, such as Jason Derulo, to host livestreamed shopping events that appeal to young consumers.

Go Where the People Are

While having a corporate presence on TikTok — like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest — is no longer seen as an option for most retailers and brands, what you do to maximize that space while also differentiating yourself from countless competitors and skillfully defusing snarky comments is an entirely different story.

But with 1 billion browsers a month scrolling through clips, few brands are in a position to overlook TikTok anymore, given its unmatched ability to create virality — that sudden spike in product demand that comes when a middle-aged guy on a skateboard takes a chug of Ocean Spray juice.

For its part, TikTok has said that retail is one of its biggest targets this year, noting in December that it intended to triple the $4 billion in advertising revenue it posted in 2021, thanks in part to a self-service advertising platform.

While TikTok’s format and huge traffic have caught the eye of advertisers, it has also drawn the attention of competitors, who have launched clone sites, including Facebook’s Reels and YouTube’s Shorts, underscoring the clout of the short-form video genre as the best way to reach many young consumers.

“Discovery and inspiration can happen anywhere, and we want to make sure we are meeting our customers where they are,” Walmart U.S. Chief Marketing Officer William White said in a blog in November, in which he outlined the retailer’s plans to expand its digital presence, calling social commerce “the future of retail.”

See more: Walmart Calls Livestreamed Shopping Shows on Twitter ‘Future of Retail’

“The success of these livestream events and growth of our business are telling us that we’re headed down the right path,” White added. “We will continue to curate special experiences for our customers who live in dynamic, immersive environments and allow customers to shop seamlessly while also being entertained.”