Online purchases will account for one third or more of retail sales in the UK in 10 years, compared to 10% at present, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit’s (EIU) Retail 2022 report released in late October.
E-commerce, m-commerce (sales via smartphones) and s-commerce (sales through social media) will bring profound change in the global retail landscape in the next decade, the report says. The way in which we buy goods and the markets where we shop will change dramatically, says the author of the report, Jon Copestake, adding retailers need to evolve and adjust to the new environment.
Mobile commerce will be the main means of shopping by 2022, as more consumers buy on the move directly from their smartphones.
Online shopping will get a further boost from sites such as Pinterest, which are major traffic drivers, the EIU estimates.
By 2022, bargain-driven companies like mysupermarket and Groupon will have amalgamated and expanded into sophisticated websites, drawing consumers with best personalised offers.
While brick and mortar stores will still exist in 10 years, they will have a very different role, integrating online and physical offerings. Convenience will be the main driver of online, mobile and social shopping as consumers adopt a multichannel approach, according to the report.