ShopShops founder Liyia Wu on making a digital QVC for China's livestreaming generation

Much has been written about the Chinese consumer that shops abroad in stores. But there is a growing movement among customers in China that, through livestreaming apps like ShopShops, are shopping at stores outside China, just through their phones. ShopShops founder Liyia Wu explained the experience from the customer's perspective: "Open up your phone, and with a click of a button you can be [on] any street, anywhere, opening the doors of stores that are interesting." The app allows viewers to watch hosts -- experienced salespeople or fashion influencers -- as they display clothes and accessories, QVC-style, for several hours. Customers can buy what they see and interact with the host and other shoppers via a chat function. ShopShops then makes a commission on purchases. The four-year-old company, based in both New York and Beijing, also completes the last leg of delivery within China. "Everything is shipped to us in bulk. We help to facilitate that last mile," Wu said. In the future, Wu hopes to expand ShopShops to hosting livestreams in other languages and on social media platforms rather than just the app itself.