We are in the middle of what looks set to be the UK’s first ‘TikTok golden quarter’ for grocery.
In the UK, TikTok Shop is growing rapidly, with the annual increase in the number of shoppers sitting at 131% and a rise in revenue of 180% year on year – demonstrating that discovery commerce demand is now large enough to shape holiday grocery outcomes.
And although not every supermarket has embraced TikTok Shop, consumers certainly have, with 44% of users in the UK using the platform to make a purchase. This consumer adoption stands in contrast to most grocers’ tentative presence on the platform.
This Christmas, TikTok is shaping festive discovery, gifting inspiration and driving impulse buying, with seasonal bundles, limited-edition snack packs and festive-flavoured novelty SKUs already trending on the platform.
TikTok: a seasonal marketplace
The Grocer’s recent TikTok report highlighted just how far retailers have come in understanding the cultural mechanics of the platform. Grocers now know how to entertain, show personality and tap into trends. TikTok is no longer experimental for the larger players.
But what this festive period is proving is that cultural relevance alone is no longer enough. This is more than just a viral dance.
TikTok has quietly become a seasonal marketplace in its own right. Consumers are not just watching. They are browsing, comparing, adding to the basket and acting on impulse the moment a product appears in their feed. Festive buying decisions are being made in real time and, rather than happening in supermarket aisles, they are being shaped by the algorithm.
It is no surprise that challenger fmcg brands are leading the way. They have recognised the shift and are already leaning into TikTok’s festive behaviour, with limited-run bundles, novelty products, quick-turn gifting SKUs and creator-driven spikes. These challengers, such as Graza, TikTok’s favourite olive oil brand, understand that TikTok Christmas demand is fast, fickle and increasingly influential.
Which is why, in this golden quarter, great content alone will not convert Christmas shoppers.
Real-time shopping
Supermarkets are entertaining millions on TikTok, but the platform’s seasonal purchase behaviour means that this needs to be about more than visibility. Grocers have understandably treated TikTok as a brand-building channel up to this point. Meanwhile, consumers are treating it as a place to shop, and they are shopping quickly.
This introduces a new behind-the-scenes challenge: do retailers have the right products, pricing and availability in place to benefit when a moment hits? The grocery calendar is used to spikes, but it has never seen spikes like those driven by TikTok Shop before.
The real difficulty, of course, is that all of this is happening in real time. As with most disruptions in retail, the biggest players are often the slowest to move, adopting a “wait and see” approach.
However, they cannot afford to watch from a distance for long. This golden quarter is a chance to test, observe and learn from smaller, more agile competitors, while ensuring the machinery behind the scenes is ready for a different kind of demand pattern.
This Christmas will show the sector what TikTok Shop can do. Christmas 2026, on the other hand, will reveal who managed to secure the Golden Goose… and who was left with a dry turkey.
Eva Liu is social commerce director at Samy
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