African Herbswoman Expands Accessibility Of TikTok Shop For New Entrepreneurs

Since its US launch in 2023, TikTok Shop, the e-commerce platform integrated directly into the short-form video app, has exceeded all expectations in terms of growth and widespread use. According to official sources, over 15 million entrepreneurs call the platform their home as of 2025, and that number is rising every day.

However, the growth has not come without a cost. As with all forms of digital entrepreneurship, whether it be whitelabeling, dropshipping, or affiliate sales, a substantial learning curve must be navigated before any profit can be generated, not to mention rising overhead costs due to global inflation. With that in mind, entrepreneurs are connecting with one another like never before to share their strategies and assist newcomers to the platform.

For example, one seller who operates under the moniker Queen Debra and sells under the African Herbswoman label recently launched a “TikTok Shop Playbook” based on her personal experiences with the platform. In the book, she shares not only her technical knowledge regarding how to set up and maintain a shop on TikTok but also insights into the promotional strategies required to cultivate a following.

Queen Debra is not alone in this effort, of course; even competing platform Shopify recently published guidance for those expanding onto the platform. As Debra explains, however, this push toward accessibility can only go so far to meet the fundamental challenges that those just starting out on the platform are facing right now.

Chief among those issues is the ethereal and ever-changing nature of the marketplace on TikTok, which is largely driven by algorithmic trends and hype. This means that, on a basic level, one needs to understand TikTok and its user base before establishing a shop there, which could also explain why sellers on the platform tend to be very young, often falling into the 18-24 age range, according to AMZScout.

A massive rise in dropshipping, and especially the resale of cheap, low-quality goods, has also led to the cultivation of a highly skeptical user base, as the MIT Technology Review recently explored in a report. Those who sell on TikTok Shop must maintain an authentic persona, backed up by excellent service and quality products, which, in many cases, can prove extremely difficult for beginners.

With all of that in mind, however, Queen Debra maintains that TikTok Shop is still the most accessible e-commerce platform currently available on the market, especially for young people. AMZScout estimates that the platform currently has a penetration rate of over 50%, placing it in the top 3 social media outlets among US users. With that substantial growth potential in mind, she, and many other entrepreneurs, remain determined to make the platform more accessible for e-commerce professionals at all stages of their careers.

African Herbswoman

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