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TikTok, Whatnot livestream shopping gains steam in the U.S.

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TikTok, Whatnot livestream shopping gains steam in the U.S.
How TikTok and Whatnot are making live shopping mainstream

From a warehouse just north of Chicago, Sarah Potempa – celebrity hairstylist and CEO of the viral Beachwaver hair curling iron – keeps thousands of viewers hooked for hours selling products on TikTok live.

This kind of livestream shopping, which has boomed in China over the past decade, is building momentum in the U.S. thanks to social media giant TikTok and live commerce platform Whatnot, which just reached a $20 billion valuation.

Beachwaver did about $8,000 in sales during the first four hours of a TikTok livestream in late July, which CNBC sat in for. She auctioned off limited-edition curling irons as her teenage son DJed behind her; demoed hair care products; and promised viewers she would shave her brother-in-law’s head live on camera if they sold 500 orders. 

It was one of hundreds of livestreamed shows that Beachwaver does each year. About a quarter of its $1 million in TikTok Shop sales so far in 2026 originated from livestreams, where the company hosts its own selling shows and works with affiliate creators on the popular social media app.

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Beachwaver CEO Sarah Potempa hosts livestreams from the company’s warehouse in Gurnee, Illinois.

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Reminiscent of the QVC craze of the past few decades, livestream shopping puts consumers in front of hosts who sell products in real time.

Now, QVC is live on TikTok for more than 200 hours per week across seven channels, according to the company, as it prioritizes digital after recently emerging from bankruptcy.

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“QVC is a great example of a large established retailer that might have been seen as a competitor to TikTok shop … but in fact they have turned out to be a really successful merchant,” said Patrick Nommensen, president of strategic initiatives for TikTok Shop in the Americas.

Beachwaver got its start on QVC. TikTok and Whatnot have reinvented the wheel.

“Nobody is saying, OK, you have 10 minutes at 7 p.m. and get ready and here’s your 10 minutes and you’re done,” said Potempa. “You definitely need to be on longer on a digital platform, but you really are more in control of the revenue.”

Beachwaver CEO Sarah Potempa uses the company’s namesake product, a patented rotating curling iron.

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Following in China’s footsteps

Live shopping has been increasingly integrated into Chinese “super apps,” which are utilized by millions of users and combine features like social media and messaging in the case of WeChat or artificial intelligence assistance, food delivery and travel booking on Alibaba’s Qwen.

“[Chinese consumers] still like stores, but they use the livestream part of the digital experience as the entertainment, the engagement, the inspiration,” said Globaldata managing director Neil Saunders. “In the U.S., we’ve tended to rely traditionally more on stores to fulfill that role.”

Saunders said that’s changing now as younger consumers lean more into live commerce to discover products.

U.S. live shopping winners

TikTok Shop launched in 2023. The company shared exclusively with CNBC that live shopping sales more than doubled in the first half of 2026 compared with the same time frame in 2025.

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The number of live shopping sessions increased by more than 60% during the same period, TikTok said, and total live hours grew by more than 80%.

Founded in 2019, Whatnot built its audience on novelties and collectibles. It’s grown rapidly over the past year, doubling its valuation since October. Whatnot ranked No. 8 on this year’s CNBC Disruptor 50 list, which identifies the most promising venture-backed companies.

Whatnot says it’s the largest live shopping platform in the U.S. but declined to share its domestic sales figures. The company told CNBC that a majority of the $8 billion in global sales it reported for 2025 were in the U.S.

“You can have [5,000], 10,000 people on Whatnot or TikTok watching your show at one time,” said Eric Pagan, who sells for brands on both platforms, during an interview in mid-August. “I did a show on TikTok this weekend that was well into six figures … I think what brands are not aware of yet is that that exists.”

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Whatnot’s core focus is auctions, where viewers can bid on products in real time. TikTok rolled out live auctions in January. 

“It feels like things are really, really clicking and live shopping is becoming a bit more mainstream,” said Whatnot’s chief revenue officer, Armand Wilson. “In year one, it was largely all collectibles. … Now pretty much anyone can download Whatnot and find something for them.”

Whatnot sellers showcasing Funko Pops on the platform.

Source: Whatnot Inc.

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Legacy online marketplaces like Amazon, Walmart and eBay also have native platforms for sellers to host live shopping streams, though those platforms aren’t as inherently video-first as social media sites.

Amazon and Walmart declined to comment about their live shopping businesses, while a representative for eBay Live described the offering as making shopping “more human.” All three companies declined to share livestream sales figures with CNBC.

Mark Yuan, a former business development lead for eBay’s live shopping division and now the owner of e-commerce consulting company And Luxe, said legacy marketplaces benefit from the consumer trust that comes with how long they have been around.

“Those are the things you can’t buy with money, but unfortunately, what gives them the advantage also might be their barriers as well,” he said. “Structurally it’s very hard to transform themselves into a discovery-first or content-first [platform].”

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The future of shopping?

Where newer entrants are succeeding is in creating forums for like-minded consumers.

Whatnot, which is especially popular for collectibles, says it prioritizes community and has seen success in areas like Funko Pop figurines, Pokemon cards, sneakers and fashion.

“Going into a community, really deeply understanding their problems and building a product around them has been the ethos that I think has gotten us to where we are today and what really differentiates us” said Wilson.

Pagan, the livestream host, said without the trust of your viewers, “there is no point in even being live.”

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“Those people are my friends,” he added. “I believe that they know things about me that a normal person on the street wouldn’t know. And we had those conversations on a livestream.”

TikTok Shop logo on a smartphone.

Costfoto | Nurphoto | Getty Images

Marshal Cohen, chief retail analyst at Circana, said livestream shopping helps to bridge the gap between e-commerce and traditional retail.

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“You can’t touch and feel the product, but you can hear from others what they think about it,” said Cohen. “[Live shopping] bridges that shortfall of the inability to touch and feel. And that’s always been online’s biggest challenge.”

But the platforms have their own set of challenges. Whatnot and TikTok have had to contend with issues of counterfeit and stolen goods

For the sellers, leveraging a large platform comes at a cost: Whatnot takes a commission fee of between 4% and 8% of sales depending on the product, and TikTok takes 6% — plus additional payment processing fees. 

And, the growing popularity of live shopping has made it harder to compete for eyeballs.

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“The biggest challenge really is visibility,” said Globaldata’s Saunders. “You have to make sure that your feed is aligned with the algorithm and that it’s putting you in front of the right people.”

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Bank of America VP killed in Times Square stabbing attack

Bank of America Vice President Erin Piacenti was killed during a high-profile stabbing in New York City’s Times Square on Monday. 

The New York City Police Department (NYPD) identified Erin Piacenti, 32, of Chester, New Jersey, as the deceased victim. 

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Bank of America acknowledged Piacenti’s death in an email obtained by Reuters.

“We are shocked and deeply saddened by the tragic loss ​of our colleague. She was a ​valued teammate who will be greatly ⁠missed. Our hearts go out to her ​family and all of her loved ones,” the bank wrote in the email. 

After receiving a 911 call shortly before 4:30 p.m. on Monday, NYPD officers found a 49-year-old woman wielding two knives in Times Square. 

Officers shot the assailant, who was later pronounced dead at the hospital. 

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Dyson launches $499 toothbrush with built-in camera and precision jet

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Dyson launches $499 toothbrush with built-in camera and precision jet

Dyson is expanding into oral care with a $499 smart toothbrush that uses a built-in camera and targeted liquid jet to clean between teeth.

The CameraJet, which launches on Tuesday, uses a 100,000-pixel macro camera and artificial intelligence to identify gaps between teeth and automatically directs mouthrinse toward them.

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The $499 device marks Dyson’s latest expansion beyond the vacuum cleaners and hair care products for which the company is best known, adding another high-priced consumer product to its lineup. 

Dyson says the camera can analyze 28 images per second. Its software can trigger the jet within 100 milliseconds of detecting a gap.

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The Dyson CameraJet.

The $499 device marks Dyson’s latest expansion beyond the vacuum cleaners and hair-care products. (Dyson)

The CameraJet uses a conical liquid jet rather than the narrow stream found on traditional water flossers. Dyson says the system is designed to remove plaque between teeth while operating at lower pressure.

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A 12.5-milliliter reservoir holds mouthrinse, while an included dock can refill the tank in about three seconds, according to the company.

The Dyson CameraJet.

Users can connect the device to the MyDyson app for live camera viewing. (Dyson)

Users can connect the device to the MyDyson app for live camera viewing, cleaning guidance, coverage maps and feedback on brushing technique.

Dyson says images are not stored or shared and that processing takes place on the device.

The company also says laboratory testing found the CameraJet removed nearly 70% more plaque in hard-to-reach areas than premium electric toothbrushes under certain test conditions. Dyson conducted the testing using proxy plaque developed through research with the National University of Singapore.

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Dyson CameraJet toothbrush.

Dyson says images are not stored or shared and that processing takes place on the device. (Dyson)

Dyson is also developing low-foaming mouthrinse and SLS-free toothpaste for use with the device.

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The CameraJet is available through Dyson’s website and Dyson Demo Stores.

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(VIDEO) Travis Kelce Reveals Wendy, His and Taylor Swifts New Dog, in Tommy Hilfiger Fashion Campaign

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US singer-songwriter Taylor Swift and Kansas City Chiefs' tight end Travis Kelce embrace after the Super Bowl on Sunday

Travis Kelce’s new Tommy Hilfiger fashion campaign gave the world its first official look at another member of his household this week: a fluffy white Samoyed named Wendy, the dog he shares with his wife, Taylor Swift.

Kelce, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end, is one of several sports and fashion stars featured in Tommy Hilfiger’s Fall 2026 campaign, which debuted Tuesday and was filmed at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. In the roughly two-minute ad, Kelce arrives at the hotel wearing a gray hoodie and tan coat, encountering fellow campaign stars including model Gigi Hadid, tennis player Frances Tiafoe and retired NBA All-Star Carmelo Anthony before settling into a suite, where Wendy joins him on a couch for the campaign’s most talked-about moment.

Speaking with Vogue about the dog’s inclusion in the shoot, Kelce said the Hilfiger creative team had originally floated the idea of bringing a canine into the campaign, and he offered up Wendy without hesitation. “We figured, why not her? She crushed it, and actually really fit into that Tommy aesthetic, too,” Kelce told the magazine. “Those are some of my favorite shots.” Asked about the dog directly, Kelce did not hide his affection. “Are you kidding me? She lights up my day,” he said.

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Wendy’s name had not been officially confirmed prior to the campaign’s release, despite months of fan speculation about a dog first spotted traveling with Kelce in July, when the Samoyed was photographed disembarking a private jet with him in Palm Beach, Florida. Forbes identified the dog’s name as Wendy in its coverage of the Tommy Hilfiger ad, according to reporting from TMZ, though the outlet briefly removed the name from its story before it was later reinstated and picked up more broadly by other outlets.

The dog’s public debut adds a fourth pet to the household Kelce and Swift have built since their wedding this summer. Swift has long been known for her trio of cats, Meredith Grey, Olivia Benson and Benjamin Button, animals that have appeared throughout her career in social media posts, music videos and professional photo shoots. Benjamin Button notably appeared alongside Swift on the cover of Time magazine after she was named the publication’s 2023 Person of the Year.

Kelce and Swift married this offseason in a ceremony held at Madison Square Garden, an event that drew a wide array of high-profile guests from both the entertainment and sports worlds. Photos from the wedding reportedly included garden-themed decor featuring a portrait of the couple holding a white dog, an image some fans have since connected to Wendy’s earlier, less formal public sightings.

Tuesday’s campaign marks the formal start of Kelce’s new partnership with Tommy Hilfiger, which the brand’s namesake designer described in a statement as a natural pairing given Kelce’s cultural reach. “Travis Kelce is one of the most magnetic figures in sport and culture today,” Tommy Hilfiger said. “He is at the forefront of a new generation of athletes expressing themselves through style.” Kelce, for his part, described a personal connection to the brand dating back to his teenage years. “Ever since high school, when I used to ask my mom to buy [Tommy Hilfiger] Sailing Gear jackets, I’ve been drawn toward the brand’s confident style,” he said.

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The Fall 2026 campaign is set to be followed by a deeper collaboration between Kelce and the brand, with a dedicated design partnership planned for spring 2027. Kelce joins a lineup of past Tommy Hilfiger collaborators that has included tennis star Rafael Nadal, Formula 1 driver Lewis Hamilton, model Gigi Hadid and actress Zendaya.

The dog’s appearance comes as Kelce continues balancing his football career with an expanding roster of outside business ventures, including a prior limited-edition collaboration with American Eagle under his Tru Kolors brand. Kelce, who considered retirement following the 2025 NFL season, ultimately signed a three-year contract worth up to 57.75 million dollars with the Chiefs this offseason, a deal structured as effectively a one-year, 12 million dollar arrangement that could mark the final chapter of his playing career. Should Kelce eventually step away from football, he now has plenty of company waiting at home, with Wendy set to remain a fixture both in the Kelce-Swift household and, evidently, on brand campaigns going forward.

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Why small UK businesses are ditching landlines for virtual phone numbers

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What UK Entrepreneurs Actually Need to Know About Virtual Numbers

For decades, a fixed office landline was simply part of running a business.

That’s changing fast. Across the UK, sole traders and small firms are dropping traditional lines in favour of a virtual phone number — a business number that works on the mobile they already carry. Here’s what’s driving the shift.

The old network is being switched off

The timing isn’t a coincidence. The UK’s traditional copper phone network (the PSTN) is being retired, and analogue landlines are being phased out in favour of digital alternatives. For a small business, that looming deadline is a natural prompt to ask a bigger question: do we need a physical line at all?

For many, the answer is no. If your team already works from mobiles, laptops and the odd coffee shop, a desk-bound line starts to look like a cost without a purpose.

What a virtual number actually does

A virtual phone number isn’t tied to a single handset or location. Calls to your business number are simply diverted to whatever device you’re using — usually your mobile. You keep a professional presence, without the hardware.

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The practical wins add up quickly:

  • Work and personal calls stay separate. You hand out a business number, not your personal mobile.
  • You’re reachable anywhere. Calls follow you, whether you’re on site, at home or travelling.
  • No engineer, no installation. Setup takes minutes, not weeks, and there’s nothing to wire in.

Crucially, a virtual number still looks the part. You can choose a UK phone number with a local area code — an 0161 for Manchester, an 020 for London — so customers see a familiar, credible number rather than a mobile.

Professional features without the phone system

The other draw is control. Modern virtual services bundle in the kind of features that used to require an expensive on-premise phone system: call forwarding, business hours, voicemail, custom greetings and call menus, all managed from an app.

For a growing business, that means you can route calls to the right person, switch off cleanly after hours, and add numbers or users as the team expands — without a contract renegotiation or a visit from an installer.

A lower-risk way to look bigger

Cost plays a part too. Virtual numbers typically run on a straightforward monthly subscription, with no lengthy contracts and no hardware to buy. Providers like Rinkel start from a few pounds per user per month, which makes a professional setup accessible even for a one-person business.

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The bigger picture is simple: as the old network winds down and work becomes more mobile, the fixed landline is quietly becoming optional. For many small UK businesses, a virtual number offers the same professional front — with a lot more freedom behind it.

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