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Britain's traditional shopkeepers are increasingly boosting sales by 'going live' on TikTok's shopping channel – using the social media platform to sell their fresh produce via QVC-style livestreams.

Shoppers disillusioned with supermarkets who want to support small or specialist businesses are tuning into the often lively broadcasts to make their purchases.

Many of the store owners broadcasting use centuries-old methods of trading – talking up the freshness of their produce to a live audience, only now people are listening not on the high street but on their smartphones at home.

The Fish Society, for example, which was founded 25 years ago in Guildford, freezes just-caught fish and seafood and then uses the platform as one way of selling it.

In one clip, Will, an intern working at the company, shares his 'favourite under £15 finds', including swordfish steaks for £12.70, butterflied red mullet for £7 and cooked peeled king prawns for £9.60.

A counter-top conversation online: Traditional shopkeepers have discovered livestreaming, saying platforms such as TikTok let them speak direct to customers and sales, including at The Fat Butcher (pictured), based in Northumberland, are booming

Customers can see where their produce is coming from and ask questions in the same way they might in a shop if they were face-to-face...many customers entering the livestream are welcomed as they do so (Pictured: The Veg Box Company)

Other posts focus on how-to recipes – including prepping soft shell crab and monkfish cheeks, as well as discussions on the health benefits of eating more seafood and insights into how the fish is caught and processed.

Elsewhere, you're only a couple of clicks away from online butchers, bakers, cheesemongers and grocers too, as well as more artisan delis.

Join a livestream with The Veg Box Company, a farm produce shop based near Lancashire, and you're likely to get addressed by name with a friendly hello as you watch fruit and veg carefully packed in brown paper bags.

Questions can be posed in the live chat and the greengrocer working will answer on everything from the company's sustainable packaging to the mostly Lancashire farms where the produce is picked.

Just over 100 customers are online after 30 minutes or so. One happy customer, Sue Sinclair, commented during the stream: 'My family loved the large fruit and veg box. The quality of it was 100% better than the supermarket.'

Food shopping on TikTok might sound modern, but those using it are actually enjoying centuries-old trading methods - where a shopkeeper and their customer discuss produce (Pictured: Fresh plaice being advertised by The Fish Society)

The Veg Box Company's pricing is also addressed openly – the cost of a 'gorgeous' savoy cabbage, priced at £1.75, is compared to one sold by Ocado for around £1 cheaper.

The brand delivers nationwide 'even to remote areas' but the engaging assistant is frank about costs with her customers: 'We're more expensive than supermarkets - we can't compete on price for the quality of produce we sell.

'A lot of people are shopping local rather than going to supermarket. The only downside is the price difference - people don't want to pay it.'

It's not without customer incentives though – a £5 off voucher and free delivery over £30 is offered onscreen while the selling happens.

The Fish Society shares everything from where fish is caught to how its filleted with customers buying online

One enterprising North East meat shop, The Fat Butcher, told The Times this week that the store, based in Blyth, near Newcastle, has seen profits rocket by 600 per cent – after taking the QVC approach.

The shopping channel, which stands for 'Quality, Value, Convenience' and arrived from the US in the 90s, became a huge hit with at-home shoppers, who love the detailed information served up for each product.

Butcher Mason Miller told The Times: 'So many people, especially in remote areas, don’t have a local butcher and the beauty of the livestreams is that it creates the butcher experience.'

He describes it as a 'direct conversation', saying: 'If I’m selling a Tomahawk steak, think of the conversations you would have over the butcher’s counter that now you might not be able to have.'

Consumer expert Jane Hawkes, aka Lady Janey, says this new way of shopping – and selling – has something very traditional at its core.

She tells the Daily Mail: 'Supermarkets may well win on price but these businesses are reminding us that people still like to buy from people.

'TikTok live shopping brings back that old-fashioned interaction with the seller in that you can ask questions, see exactly what you’re getting and have a bit of a chat.'

It's a perfect marriage of new technology and discerning service, says Lady Janey.

'It’s personal, it builds trust and when you’re buying groceries, seeing the quality for yourself can be far more tempting than simply clicking ‘add to basket’ and getting something cheaper.

'I very much welcome this concept because anything that encourages businesses to actually engage with their customers has to be a good thing as it’s sadly become a rarity.'