Sam Blumenthal

In a time when shoppers are wary of being in physical shopping centers due to the pandemic, retailers, brands and social media apps have all jumped on the shoppable live content playing field in some way. In recent months, Nordstrom announced over 50 interactive livestream events, Facebook partnered with Anne Klein to debut its live in-app shopping... See more

According to Alibaba, as many as 400 company executives and 300 celebrities are holding livestreams during this year’s Singles Day. Pop singer Taylor Swift joined Chinese livestreaming megastar Huang Wei for a livestream last weekend ahead of Singles Day.

“A major trend going forward will be elevated livestream experiences,” said Alibaba Group Vice President Yu Feng, who oversees content e-commerce at Taobao. “More and more consumers have adopted livestreaming as a way to shop. It has become an irreversible trend and, at the same time, an increasingly competitive space.”