May 08, 2017

Increased cross-border trade opens up opportunities for e-commerce companies interested in establishing on new European markets.

E-commerce in Europe is continuing to grow. This becomes very clear in the new report commissioned by PostNord/Direct Link. Europeans make purchases online on a more regular basis, and the average amount they spend is now higher than before.

The recently published study, based on interviews with 12 000 consumers from 12 different European markets, came to the conclusion that approximately 250 million consumers in the surveyed markets bought products online during the past year. The total spending in these countries was estimated to be around 190 billion EUR. The UK, Germany and France, the three largest European e-commerce market, accounted for the majority of this spend. UK online consumers had the highest average spending per capita with slightly over 1 100 EUR per year. Countries like Spain, Italy and Poland showed an interesting development, with increasing Internet penetration and a higher average spend.
E-commerce in Europe 2016 report


One distinct trend is that more and more European consumers are shopping online from foreign countries. The number of people doing so has increased in all of the studied markets compared with last year’s study. The possibility to find lower prices is one of the strongest drivers for purchases from abroad. A lot of the respondents also state that they are looking for specific brands or products that are hard to come by in their own countries.

Although the various markets in the study have many similarities, there are also differences that have to be considered when launching on a new European market. For example, there are many different preferences in the various markets when it comes to delivery options and payment alternatives.

The “E-commerce in Europe 2016” report is packed with useful information about shopping trends, consumer behaviour and expectations.

To learn more, order your free copy of the report.