An 8% growth in H1 2013 compared to H1 2012 presents a rise in Dutch online purchasing.
According to the bi-annual consumer expenditure report (Thuiswinkel Market Monitor 2013-1), done by Blauw Research and sponsored by PostNL, online turnover is at 5 billion Euros and online shopping continues to grow despite a decline in card-present shopping environments which continues to be affected by recession. The data mirrors the results of several other studies that have been done to reveal the growth of online retail in Europe.
The report presents product specific numbers, saying that:
*Clothing has grown by 14% and telecommunications by 12% (both large segments of the online shopping industry).
*Travel is the largest sector (at 2 billion Euros in H1 2013) and has grown by 5%.
*Toys is the fastest growing sector at 24% increase.
*Music turnover growth was 18% and computer hardware was 17% increase.
The report says that growth in online consumption is greater with the sale of goods (11%) than the sale of services (6%). It also suggests that most people in the Netherlands have made an online purchase before which is why the growth of new online consumers is slowing down and rising numbers are coming from increased activity by existing shoppers. It is expected that the growth will be maintained into H2 2013 due partly to tablet and smartphone usage.
"What’s more, both physical and web retailers are continuing to make enormous investments in the online channel and many new initiatives are being realised that make it possible for consumers to switch easily between online and offline channels," says Frank Sibbel, Managing Partner of Blauw Research.
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