[1/2]A man holds iPhone 14 as new Apple models go on sale at the Apple Store in Beijing, China, September 16, 2022. REUTERS/Thomas Peter/File Photo
BEIJING, July 11 (Reuters) – iPhone maker Apple (AAPL.O) has opened a store on its social media platform, Tencent (0700.HK) subsidiary WeChat said on Tuesday, marking an expansion of its retail channels. The American company ranks second in the world. largest economy.
The announcement of WeChat, China’s dominant messaging app that also provides e-commerce, live streaming and payment services, announced that users will be able to buy Apple products including iPhones, iPads and Macs from the store.
Apple and Tencent did not immediately respond to requests for further comment.
Apple’s move comes as Chinese consumers increasingly turn to social media platforms such as WeChat and ByteDance’s Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, to shop.
Besides its stores and website, Apple already operates a store on Alibaba Group’s Tmall (9988.HK) online marketplace. Apple also attempted to market its products live in China for the first time in May with an hour-long show.
Smartphone sales in China in the first quarter fell 5% year-on-year, marking the country’s lowest first-quarter sales figure since 2014, according to data from Counterpoint Research.
However, during the quarter, Apple recorded a 19.9% share of the Chinese smartphone market — the largest since 2014 — as sales increased 6% year-over-year in a declining market.
(Reporting by Beijing Newsroom, Sophie Yu and Brenda Goh); Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Jamie Fried
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