“How can a Romanian business compete with prices like these?”
It’s a question we’ve been hearing more and more over the past year.
Platforms such as Temu, Shein, AliExpress, Amazon and TikTok Shop have fundamentally changed the way people shop. Consumers can now compare thousands of products, prices and alternatives almost instantly, often finding options that cost a fraction of what a local business charges.
For many Romanian SMEs, this has created a difficult new reality. Products that once seemed competitively priced can suddenly look expensive when customers can find seemingly similar alternatives online for half the price. Margins are under pressure, price comparisons are easier than ever, and customer loyalty can feel increasingly difficult to maintain.
So, should businesses respond by lowering their prices and accepting smaller margins just to stay competitive?
Not necessarily.
Because competing with global marketplaces on price is usually a race you can’t win. Their advantage comes from scale, massive product catalogues and highly optimized supply chains. Trying to beat them at their own game can quickly turn into a race to the bottom.
Instead, the better question is: What can your business offer that a marketplace can’t?
And that’s where your biggest opportunity might be.
The real competition isn’t Temu.
It’s tempting to think that Temu is your biggest competitor. But that’s rarely true. Your biggest competitor is commoditization.
When customers see your product as interchangeable with dozens of similar options, price becomes the only thing left to compare. And price is a race very few businesses can afford to win. There’s almost always someone willing, or able, to sell cheaper.
Trying to beat global marketplaces at their own game is rarely a sustainable strategy. The better question is: How do you give customers a reason to choose you even when you’re not the cheapest option?
Price is easy to compare. Value isn’t.
Consumers don’t evaluate every purchase in the same way. If you’re buying a phone charger, for example, you might be perfectly happy to choose the cheapest option that does the job. But when the decision involves a dentist, a software partner, an architect, or even a restaurant for a special occasion, the equation becomes much more complicated.
Price is still part of the decision, but it’s no longer the only factor. Trust, convenience, expertise, reputation and experience can all influence whether someone chooses one business over another. And unlike price, these are much harder to compare at a glance, and much harder for competitors to copy.
This is where smaller businesses can create a real advantage. Instead of trying to win on price alone, they can build a proposition around the value of the entire experience. When customers understand what makes a business worth choosing, there is more room to protect margins and build stronger, longer-term relationships.
Temu can’t build your brand.
Products can be copied. Features can be replicated. Prices can be undercut. Brands are much harder to copy.
People don’t buy Apple because it’s the cheapest technology company. They don’t choose Patagonia because it offers the lowest prices. And they don’t queue outside LEGO stores because there aren’t cheaper toys available.
They buy into what these brands represent.
A strong brand creates familiarity, trust and confidence. More importantly, it gives customers a reason to come back, even when cheaper alternatives are readily available.
For smaller businesses, this can be one of the most powerful ways to compete with global marketplaces. You may not be able to offer the lowest price, but you can build something that marketplaces can’t: a brand people recognise, trust and actively want to choose.
And that’s something no marketplace can manufacture overnight.
Temu can’t offer your expertise.
Customers rarely buy a product in isolation. They also buy confidence that they’re making the right decision.
A local furniture retailer can offer advice on choosing the right piece for a space. A pharmacy can help customers find products that suit their needs. A construction company can explain which solution makes the most sense in the long term. A software agency can tailor a platform to a specific business and its challenges.
The product or service itself may sometimes be similar. The expertise behind it isn’t.
Knowledge, consultation and personalized recommendations can turn a simple transaction into a relationship. And for many businesses, that relationship is something a global marketplace simply can’t replicate.
Temu can’t be part of your community.
One of the greatest advantages local businesses have is proximity. You understand your market, speak your customers’ language and know the challenges they face. You’re also in a position to build relationships that go beyond a transaction.
You can sponsor local events, take part in industry conferences, support community initiatives or simply become a familiar presence in the lives of your customers. These interactions create a sense of connection that a global marketplace operating at scale can’t easily replicate.
Global platforms compete through scale. Local businesses can compete through connection. And when customers feel that a business understands them and is genuinely part of their community, that connection can become a powerful reason to choose it over a cheaper alternative.
Temu can’t own your customer experience.
Think about the businesses you recommend without hesitation. It’s rarely because they were the cheapest option. More often, it’s because they made the entire experience easy.
Fast responses, clear communication, reliable delivery, simple returns, friendly support and thoughtful follow-up can all shape how customers remember a business. These details might seem small individually, but together they can make a significant difference in how people perceive your brand.
Every interaction is part of the customer experience. And when that experience is consistently positive, it can create a level of trust and loyalty that discounts alone rarely achieve.
AI makes differentiation even more important.
Artificial intelligence is making it easier than ever to launch an online store, create advertising campaigns, generate product descriptions and automate marketing. That’s great news, but it also comes with a challenge.
When more businesses have access to the same tools, they can start to look remarkably similar. The same AI-generated copy, similar visuals, automated campaigns and increasingly polished online experiences can make it harder for customers to see what truly sets one business apart from another.
The businesses that stand out won’t necessarily be the ones using the most advanced AI. They’ll be the ones with the clearest positioning, strongest brands and deepest understanding of their customers, using technology to amplify what makes them different rather than to replace it.
Technology is becoming more accessible. Trust, expertise and genuine differentiation are becoming more valuable.
So what should Romanian businesses focus on?
Instead of asking, “How do we compete with Temu?”, it might be more useful to start asking a different set of questions.
Are we solving a problem that our customers genuinely care about? Do they understand what makes us different? Would they still recommend us if they found a cheaper alternative elsewhere? Are we building a brand, or are we simply selling products?
These questions shift the focus away from competing on price and towards building something that is much harder to replace: relevance, trust and customer loyalty.
Because the goal shouldn’t be to beat Temu at its own game. It should be to give customers a reason to choose you even when Temu is cheaper.
Where an External CMO makes the difference.
When markets become more competitive, businesses often respond by increasing discounts or spending more on advertising. Sometimes, that can work in the short term. But rarely does it address the underlying problem.
An External CMO can help businesses step back and identify where they can create value beyond price. That might mean refining their positioning, strengthening the brand, improving the customer journey, aligning marketing with broader business goals, or identifying opportunities that competitors can’t easily replicate.
Because sustainable growth doesn’t come from winning a price war. It comes from becoming the obvious choice for the right customers.
Our conclusion.
Temu didn’t just change the way people shop. It changed what they expect from the shopping experience. Customers now have more choice, more price transparency and more alternatives than ever before.
That’s challenging for businesses, especially smaller ones. But it’s also an opportunity.
The businesses that thrive over the next decade won’t necessarily be the ones with the lowest prices. They’ll be the ones offering something marketplaces can’t easily package, discount or ship: a memorable brand, trusted expertise, an exceptional customer experience and genuine relationships.
These are the competitive advantages worth investing in. And unlike a price tag, their value can grow over time.
If you need help in crafting the perfect strategy for your brand, leave us a message.
