The passage to the digital shopping arrived earlier than expected

The passage from the shopping inside the shops to the digital shopping is inevitable. Many, especially the youth and the very younger people, choose already the most confortable option. We only need few clicks, everywhere you are, from the quiet of your home, during a train trip, during the break, and you can buy whatever you want. Really, everything. The possibilities online are endless and for all the pockets!

The digital shopping and the lockdown

However many see the digital shopping as the big enemy to fight. Buying online we will destroy the small realities or they will have to re-invent themselves, to find out that the possibilities with the digital shopping are endless, for both parties. 

Whatever you thought is this passage will happen it is inevitable. But the recent lockdown gave an incredible push to the digital shopping. The predictions made were completely overturned. In few months we had a jump that the predictions calculated in not less than five years!

The habits changed a lot in this diffult period. The social distance, the masks, the smartworking, the video calls. Some habits will end with the end of the emergency. But some others arrived to remain. And maybe it isn’t so bad. 

The passage to the digital shopping arrived, like it or not, before of what was predicted, “thanks” to the quarantine, but not only. Infact, even after they re-opened all the shops the people continued to buy online and it will be hard to come back. Here you have some numbers. 

A jump of five years

According to what reported by the IBM US Retail Index on the website of the World Economic Forum, in only two months of general lockdown the digital shopping did a jump of five years. 

The colossus of the online sales saw an unprecedent increase. The king of the e-commerce, Amazon, for example, recorded crazy incomes and an increase of the sales of the 40%, in the first quarter of the year.

But in this scenario the small retailers might be completely brought down, if they won’t be able to keep up. Nothing forbids them to adapt to it, obviusly. Infact, there weren’t only the colossus of the e-commerce to suddenly jump into the future, but even many supermarkets and small companies. 

Many shops, even the smallest ones, adapted themselves to the economic-healthcare crises, by offering delivering and online shopping services. Even many town shops tried this new way, by using the easiest channels, like the social networks.

Sure the passage had to be slower and more progressive and the retailers should have more time to adapt themselves to it. Now, they must roll up their sleeves and be able to keep up with the time. 

The numbers of the digital shopping in the 2020

Like we said the pandemic let the online shopping incredibly grown. Here you have the numbers reported by the IBM Us Retail Index:

• Negative numbers: the physical shopping suffered a sever blow. The “not essential” shops had a drop of the 25% in the first trimester of the year, which arrived to the 75% in the second trimester.
• The online shopping: otherwise the online shopping grown of the 31,8% in the second trimester of the 2020, for a total in the year of the 44,5%. It was estimated, therefore, that the grocery online, that in the first trimester was of the 11,8%, arrived, in the second trimester to the 16,1%. But these numbers are nothing if we think that only Amazon by itself recorded an increase of the 40%.

What did the people buy online in the 2020

Furthermore, the same report, reported even what was the goods most bought online in this 2020. If until the last year the clothes were between the very first ones, this year this sector had a drastic decrease. Obviusly, even because the lack of social interactions, the clothings arrived to the very last positions of the online shopping.

To record the highest increase were the food stuffs, the alchools and the home products, that recorded an increase of the 12, 16 and 14%.

The post lockdown kept the same trend. And even if many started again to do the shopping inside the real shops, these saw an increase of the card payments of the 70%.

Incredibly this period saw an approach to the digital shopping and to the card payments even of the over 65 that an increase of the card payments of the 19%.

The quarantine moved into the digital shopping and we can’t be found unprepared. 

This post is also available in: Italiano