Retail industry to be dominated by online within five years

Dean Blake

13th Sep 2018

Over half of Australian’s see the retail industry moving mainly online in the next two-to-five years, according to a survey by parcel delivery service CouriersPlease.

25 per cent of respondents believe the retail industry is headed almost exclusively online, a further 35 per cent agree but within a time frame of five years, and 15 per cent of respondents do not believe online is the natural transition for the struggling retail industry.

Additionally, three in four respondents believe there will be further closures of bricks-and-mortar-stores in the next two years, following examples such as Toys ‘R’ Us, Gap and Espirit.

In terms of what people are comfortable to purchase online, 75 per cent of respondents noted Books, DVDs and Stationary are common online purchases for them, suggesting shoppers are more likely to use online purchases on smaller, low-cost items.

However, 59 per cent of respondents noted they would happily buy technology products online.

Half of respondents were comfortable buying health and beauty products online, while only 38 per cent would be comfortable buying white-goods and appliances.

90 per cent of those surveyed noted they wouldn’t purchase pets or animals online, while 73 per cent said they would prefer to buy Jewelry in-store.

Millennials were more than twice as likely to shop online compared to their Baby Boomer counterparts, at a rate of 64 per cent of 19-to-29 year olds to 25 per cent.