How Spice Kitchen is winning sales through QVC and TikTok LIVE

Sanjay Aggarwal phoned me from his car during a hectic search for more mailing bags.

Being listed as Today's Special Value offer on QVC – the UK’s largest shopping channel – left the Spice Kitchen founder hustling to fulfil thousands of extra orders.

Appearances on QVC and TikTok LIVE have opened up new opportunities for the 13-year-old family business.

Winning a spot on the QVC shopping channel

Spice Kitchen built its brand through retailers. It’s stocked in 600 shops – from John Lewis and Selfridges to local delis – and has a growing US presence.

It first appeared on shopping channel QVC last year, says Sanjay.

“It holds massive weight. Customers who shop on it really shop on it. People are very loyal. I have wanted to do it since we started but it took me a long time to convince the buyers.”

QVC is known for gardening, beauty and fashion, but food is a growing category, adds Sanjay.

“You only have 10 to 20 minutes. It sharpened my pencil in terms of selling – you have to be really succinct and get across your USPs.”

Taking the leap with TikTok

Sanjay pursued QVC for some time, but was sceptical about TikTok.

Getting criticised by the judges of two well-known small business competitions pushed him to start making short-form video content.

“We were told it could be really powerful for getting our name out there.”

He set up TikTok Shop and started filming content a few months ago, to try and learn what would work.

Sanjay says he was surprised the platform is very sales-heavy and AI-driven.

“I was fearful it was full of very young people who weren’t our customers and that we needed to be very on-trend, which might be off brand. I got that completely wrong.”

The first few clips include The hack to making tasty feasts, which has 25k views, and What’s in our spice tins, which has 16k views.

Sanjay explains that people want to see the basics behind the brand, adding that “being less trendy has actually worked better” for Spice Kitchen.

Setting up to go LIVE on TikTok

Sanjay’s a confident salesperson and the experience with QVC meant TikTok LIVE was a natural next step.

The two platforms have different audiences, but similar dynamics when it comes to discounts and the need to capture viewers’ attention.

Sanjay shared tips from what he’s learnt about setting up for a LIVE stream:

• place products behind and in front of you, so you can quickly pick them up and show viewers what you sell

• make sure you’re always on camera and there’s plenty of movement happening

• use a tripod, a gimbal or a magnetic stand to hold the phone you’re filming with

• keep your phone on charge while you’re streaming – it uses a lot of battery power

• set up a laptop next to you, so you can manage comments easily

He added that duplicating your laptop screen on a monitor next to your phone helps because you can read comments without looking down.

Increasing your sales on TikTok LIVE

Sanjay says that flash sales, where a low price is offered for a small amount of time, work really well on TikTok.

Spice Kitchen also offers limited stock items and bundles, and free shipping for orders over £22.

You can add whatever you’re going to promote during a particular LIVE to a showcase before you start, making it as easy as possible for viewers to buy something.

“As you talk through the products, you pin the product. That flashes up on the screen.”

Working with affiliates on TikTok

Sanjay has been working with affiliates (content creators who promote products for a commission on any orders) on Instagram for some time.

Spice Kitchen gives them a trackable discount code and pays 10% commission.

TikTok offers an automated version of that process, says Sanjay.

“We can click a button and send them free samples and it automatically links to your product and pays them a commission.”

One example is Mrs Wilson, a “60-something” year-old who’s posted about Spice Kitchen several times including a video introducing the spice tins.

The added benefit is that affiliates will often support you when you go LIVE, says Sanjay.

“Those affiliates come on to my LIVEs and ask questions, they start bigging you up, I big them up too. You start to build this community of affiliates.”

Managing trolls and the probation period

While launching on TikTok has been a positive experience, Sanjay warns that you have to be ready for trolls (someone who posts deliberately offensive messages).

“You do get weirdos. It’s part of the deal. TikTok is encouraging you to block them and delete the comments straight away.”

Having a laptop nearby makes that easier. You can also ask a team member or one of your followers to moderate the conversation.

“You can ask people who regularly come into your LIVEs and they can delete comments and block people. It’s so helpful.”

New sellers on TikTok Shop are also given an Order Volume Limit that restricts sales, leading Spice Kitchen to sell out every day during this initial period.

Sanjay added that you need to follow TikTok’s guidelines on LIVE streams too. For example, swearing could lead to an enforcement action.

Related resources about TikTok Shop

These articles will help you learn more about selling through TikTok Shop:

• TikTok Shop: The ultimate small business guide (updated for 2025) (Enterprise Nation article)

• How to start selling successfully on TikTok Shop (Enterprise Nation Lunch + Learn)