Hardly any other platform has moved the market as much as Temu in the past 12 months: shoppers are delighted with cheap bargains, and around one in four online shoppers in Germany has already ordered there - across all age groups. The low-cost competition is not just a problem for retailers and brands, marketplaces also need to find answers to Temu's presence.

Reason enough to demystify Temu. And that's what Ed Sander, an expert in online retail in China, does in episode 69. Sander not only runs the Chinatalk learning platform, he also writes in-depth analyses of important Chinese players such as Alibaba, Shein, TMall and Temu and its parent company Pinduoduo for China TechBuzz.

In the podcast episode, he describes in detail why Temu is not actually a marketplace and how Temu's business model works, for example by strictly dictating prices to Chinese manufacturers or using sophisticated marketing tricks to constantly attract new customers. And Ed makes it clear that Temu is constantly adapting its business model very quickly to the changing market in order to secure the greatest possible growth.

Ed's main message: the Temu phenomenon is here to stay and European companies need to find ways to differentiate themselves from the competition by offering added value. Ed also has some tangible tips on this. So, listen to the new episode!

Newsflash:

• Otto increases marketplace fees: Trading on Otto's marketplace will become more expensive for all partners from August 1. The basic fee will rise from 39.90 euros per month to 99.90 euros and - even more seriously - sales fees are rising drastically for some categories such as technology and DIY.

• KaDeWe Group discontinues e-commerce: The KaDeWe Group got off to a late start in e-commerce and is now pulling the emergency brake early. As part of the restructuring, Chief Restructuring Officer Josef Schultheiß is leaving the online business.

• Zooplus marketplace is official: Zooplus CEO GEoffroy Lefebvre has announced they will open a pet centric marketplace by November.

More news is available every Monday in the Marketplace Universe Weekly newsletter. Don't miss anything and subscribe right here!

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction and Overview

03:14 Demystifying Temu and the Chinese Retail Market

09:53 Newsflash

15:39 Lack of attention paid to the Chinese market by European e-commerce experts

24:54 The Consignment Model of Temu and the Potential for Western Brands

30:55 How Temu dictates the selling price

36:22 The Unsustainable Business Model of Temu

41:49 Regulating Temu: Legal Options and Impact

46:02 Competing with Temu: Strategies for Brands and Retailers

52:01 Staying Informed: Opportunities to Learn More