The Creator Economy’s Next Phase Is Live Shopping

In a recent Instagram post, Gary Vaynerchuk, called live social shopping “a monster” that will keep getting bigger each year, then rattled off platforms he thinks matter, including Twitch, TikTok Shop, District, eBay Live, TalkShopLive, Whatnot, and Fanatics Live.

Vaynerchuk’s core claim is simple. Selling in real time can make more money than the standard creator playbook built on brand deals, platform payouts, and ad-driven attention. His pitch is not that creators are finished. It is possible that the best-paid creators may start looking like hosts, merchants, and closers.

The platform road map is moving in that direction.

Twitch announced new live shopping features ahead of TwitchCon in San Diego, describing a native shopping experience that lets viewers buy products without leaving the stream. The rollout launched with e.l.f. Cosmetics in a partnership powered by Amazon Ads, with e.l.f. calling itself the first brand to run the new in stream shoppable element.

TikTok is building the same bridge between entertainment and checkout, at far larger scale. TikTok Shop’s U.S. launch baked in affiliate style creator commissions and in feed shopping, according to an AP News report at the time of rollout.

By late 2025, TikTok still did not publish an official global sales total, but WIRED reported that analytics firm EchoTik estimated TikTok Shop sold about $19 billion worth of products globally from July through September 2025, with the United States accounting for roughly $4 billion to $4.5 billion in that period. TikTok also reported that its U.S. TikTok Shop sales exceeded $500 million during the four day Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping period in 2025.

That money is not theoretical for creators because TikTok has formalized the affiliate layer. TikTok Shop’s Seller University explains that creators earn affiliate commission when they cooperate with a merchant to promote products, and earn commission on items sold through their content.

Live shopping’s biggest U.S. proof point has come from platforms that made selling the main event, not the side quest. Whatnot, the live selling app best known for collectibles and auctions, has attracted major investor cash. The Wall Street Journal reported in early 2025 that a $265 million raise pushed Whatnot to nearly a $5 billion valuation, and that its annual livestream gross merchandise value had surpassed $3 billion. By October 2025, Business of Fashion reported Whatnot announced a $225 million Series F that valued it at $11.5 billion, with the company saying GMV more than doubled in 2025.

Fanatics Live is betting on the same behavior in sports culture, where scarcity and community already drive purchases. Fanatics announced the launch of Fanatics Live in 2023 as a dedicated livestream commerce business built around creator run, live shopping experiences in an app.

TechCrunch’s launch coverage described it as a place for fans to purchase sports collectibles and merchandise while watching exclusive content.

eBay has also leaned into the format. The company announced the launch of eBay Live as a live shopping platform for collectibles, built around discovering items, chatting and purchasing instantly. eBay’s current eBay Live hub frames the product as a real-time livestream shopping experience across categories such as collectibles, luxury, and sneakers.

Vaynerchuk’s list also includes infrastructure players that aim to turn live shopping into a repeatable business for brands and communities. District markets itself as a way to “build your own shopping platform,” promoting live shopping tools that let sellers showcase products, connect with buyers and run auctions in real time. TalkShopLive, another long-running player, describes itself as a live commerce platform connecting brands, creators, and celebrities with consumers through interactive, shoppable livestreams, and it has positioned itself as a full-service selling stack in partnerships such as one announced with Best Buy for in-store pickup tied to livestream shopping.

The reason live shopping keeps pulling platform attention is performance. McKinsey has reported that live commerce can deliver up to ten times higher conversion rates than conventional ecommerce in some cases, because it compresses discovery and decision making into one interactive session.

That is the spine of Vaynerchuk’s argument. Creator monetization often depends on outside buyers, including advertisers and brands, and shifting platform rules. Live shopping ties the outcome to conversion and customer repeat behavior, which can be steadier for people who find a product niche, build trust and show up consistently.

It is not a guaranteed win. Live shopping demands more than aesthetics and reach. It requires product knowledge, pacing, real time responsiveness and comfort selling on camera. It also raises familiar risks in social commerce, including quality control and consumer trust, especially as the ecosystem scales.

Still, if Twitch is adding in stream checkout, TikTok is formalizing affiliates, and live commerce native apps are pulling billion dollar valuations, the message is hard to ignore. The format is turning creators into merchants, and turning content into a storefront.