TikTok Shop Philippines bullish over sales growth this year

E-COMMERCE platform TikTok Shop Philippines is aiming to surpass its sales growth this year, as rising fuel prices drive demand for more affordable options on the platform.

“Our aim is still to surpass the 2025 numbers,” Yves Gonzalez, head of public policy for the Philippines at TikTok Shop, told reporters on the sidelines of an event on Wednesday.

In 2025, local sellers posted a 200% growth in sales, Mr. Gonzalez said.

“While there’s still a lot of uncertainty, we’re seeing that as consumers are feeling the pinch of the energy crisis, e-commerce is one of the options to save, but at the same time, purchase the things that they want.”

About 90% of the platform’s sellers are local players, he added.

With high oil prices linked to Middle East crisis driving up fuel costs, Mr. Gonzalez said that consumers are turning to e-commerce to lessen transport expenses.

“Of course, given the current energy crisis that we’re facing, we have to be cognizant of the reality that there will be some consumers that are going to be more wary with how they spend,” he said.

“Definitely, e-commerce is one of the possible ways that the Filipino consumer can actually be in a better situation amidst this energy crisis,” Mr. Gonzalez said.

He noted the rising trend of “discovery commerce,” a retail model where consumers find products through content like livestreams and short videos.

This style is compared to the traditional model, where shoppers actively look for an item through brick-and-mortar and digital formats.

“The whole buying process has shifted a bit to now being more discovery-centric than searching-centric,” he said.

The company is also looking to expand its Unlad Lokal program to support micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), with a focus on sellers in the Visayas and Mindanao, Mr. Gonzalez said.

TikTok Shop has reached 25,000 MSMEs to date under its Unlad Lokal initiative. In 2025 alone, the company has trained 17,000 MSMEs across Metro Manila, Cebu, and Naga City.

Unlad Lokal is a flagship program of TikTok Shop and the Department of Trade and Industry that offers hands-on training and resources to help MSMEs boost their e-commerce and digital marketing capabilities. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz