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- 🌀Marketplaces #1 shopping channel. What would you not buy there?
🌀Marketplaces #1 shopping channel. What would you not buy there?
Plus: Amazon supports European SMEs export. Can Polish SME catch up?
Artur Stańczuk
July 09, 2023
Happy Sunday! Welcome to the MarketMaze newsletter, where we bring you the latest news, statistics, and analysis from the E-commerce & Marketplace space so you can stay ahead of the curve. Each week, we'll send you an email covering all the information you need, and it will take just few mins to read.
Today's write-up is shorter 1,806 words, a 6-minute read.
This week’s TL;DR:
1. 📰News: Marketplaces are the #1 shopping channel. Would you buy utilities, banking, phone plans, and even dating app from a marketplace?
2. 📊Stat: Amazon supports European SMEs export. Can Polish SME catch up?
3. 📖Headlines: Shopify, Amazon, Temu, eBay, OLX, Shein, Zalando, Asos, DoorDash, Uber Eats, Bolt, Deliveroo, Expedia and more!
4. 😲Mazes: Amazon with almost Bulgaria of sellers, Booking.com with Australia of listings, fees and taxes added up in q-commerce in NYC
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1. 📰 News of the week
Marketplaces are the #1 shopping channel. Would you buy utilities, banking, phone plans, and even dating app from a marketplace?
Wunderman Thompson published “The Future Shopper 2023” report based on 31,000+ consumers survey across 18 international markets
Below is the summary but I highly recommend to check the full version
Online shopping
Online shopping continues to rise steadily (58% of all consumer spending is now online vs 64% in 10 yrs)
One of the drivers is shift to remote work (65% of consumers say they shop online more because of working from home)
Customers now expect a seamless omni-channel shopping experience (56% of consumers say they want seamless communication across digital and physical channels, and the ability to move between them)
This experience included various channels and devices, both online and offline (60% of global shoppers prefer to shop with a retailer or brand that has both digital and physical stores)
Channels
Marketplaces remain the top online channel (35% of global shoppers get their inspiration from marketplaces, making it the number one channel for inspiration)
Marketplaces are yet to reach full potential (51% of global consumers are open to buying their energy, water and utilities from marketplaces like Amazon, Tmall and Mercado Libre, 42% of global consumers are open to using a dating app provided by marketplaces like Amazon, Alibaba and Mercado Libre)
Physical retail and direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands are making a comeback (2nd place – consumers identified physical stores as the number two channel for both inspiration and search for their online shopping)
Social commerce is also gaining importance (67% of global shoppers say they have already bought through social media platforms)
Required features
Price is the primary factor influencing online purchasing decisions (56% of global consumers identify price as the most important factor when purchasing online, placing it in first position.)
Service is not far behind in importance (23% of consumers now expect delivery in less than 2 hours!)
Sustainability, purpose, and ethics are increasingly important but must be balanced with competitive pricing and quality service (52% of global shoppers claim to have changed their shopping habits due to concerns about global warming and the environment)
📓Takeaway:
Marketplaces remain the top channel across the funnel
Inspiration: 35% of customers mentioned Marketplaces among top3 channels for inspiration
Search: Marketplaces still #1 with 31% share of respondents mentioning as leading channel, but the dominance has diminsh by 5 p.p. since 2022
Shopping: 35% but since 2021 they lost 7 p.p. vs branded websites (like Nike, Apple).
2. 📊 Stat of the week
Amazon supports European and Polish SMEs export within and beyond the UE. Can Polish SME catch up?
European small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) on Amazon achieved export sales exceeding €17 billion, representing a growth of over 20% compared to 2021. Over 275,000 European SMEs sell through Amazon, with 40% of them exporting products within Europe
Polish companies are increasingly expanding their reach to foreign customers, with more than 75% of Polish entrepreneurs selling on Amazon deciding to export within the European Union. Over 600 Polish SMEs have surpassed PLN 1 million in sales on Amazon, including over 40 in 2022. Additionally, 1,700 entrepreneurs have reached the PLN 100,000 threshold, with over 200 achieving it for the first time last year. In 2022 alone, Polish SMEs sold over 25 million products on Amazon, averaging 50 items per minute
📓Takeaway:
Amazon's €8 billion investment in 2022 has played a crucial role in enabling entrepreneurs across Europe to enhance their export capabilities. This investment has been focused on improving technology, infrastructure, and sales tools, contributing significantly to the value of export sales.
3. 📖 Headlines of the week
🛒 Mass merchant marketplaces
🌎Shopify partners with Adyen to strengthen its ecommerce capabilities. As part of a multi-year partnership, Adyen will support Shopify’s expansion into the enterprise segment through diversified commerce solutions for large-scale merchants. Deep dive → Mumbrella
🇺🇸 Amazon “Prime Day” is being recasted as “Crime Day” by picket organized by WGA (Writers Guild of America). Prime day to be happening on 11-12 July. Deep dive → Yahoo
🇺🇸 Shopify is expanding Shop Pay (accelerated checkout service) to retailers not on its platform. Deep dive → Modern retail
🇯🇵 Temu expands to Japan, its first foray into the Asian market. Whether Temu can adapt the same model effectively and navigate Japan's local nuances remains to be seen. Deep dive → Reuters
🇪🇺 Amazon planned acquisition of iRobot is now under in-depth antitrust scrutiny in the European Union. Acquisition for USD 1.7M announced a year ago was cleared by competition regulators in the U.K. last month. Deep dive → Techcrunch
🇬🇧 eBay in partnership with M&S to sell second-hand school uniforms. The scheme is part of the retailer’s “shwopping” partnership with the anti-poverty charity, allowing shoppers to buy good quality ‘pre-loved’ uniforms amid the ongoing cost-of-living crisis. Deep dive → Internet retailing
🇧🇷 OLX Brasil announces the acquisition of Altimus, an automotive software provider for car dealerships and resellers. Deep dive → IT forum
😲 Maze of the week
Amazon with almost Bulgaria of sellers. There are as much as 6.3M sellers registered in total on Amazon (1.5M are active)
👗 Fashion marketplaces
🌎 Shein is trying lure luxury brands like Stuart Weitzman and Paul Smith to sell products on its marketplace. Brands interested in selling on Shein must first reach $2 million in annual sales on Amazon. Shein Marketplace sellers are eligible to receive incentives from the Chinese-owned company if they reach sales goals. Deep dive → Business insider
🌎 Shein may invite more counterfeit and copyright infringement issues as it wants to be more like Amazon. In the past, it has relied on sourcing its products through its on-demand manufacturing model, but lately, to grow its offerings, the company has opened its doors to third-party retailers. Deep dive → Business insider
🇺🇸 Meta introduced Twitter-rival Threads, and fashion brands are getting in. Brands including Calvin Klein, Kith, Nike, Allbirds, Shein and Uniqlo are starting to explore Threads, but as now no Kering or LVMH luxury brands have joined. Threads is not yet available in the E.U. due to issues around personal data protection. Deep dive → Glossy
🇨🇭 Zalando emerges as Switzerland’s Largest Online Store. In 2022, Zalando generated sales of EUR 1.8B euros in Switzerland. It is the biggest online store in the country. Two thirds of the country’s top 30 online stores have either shrunk or stagnated compared to 2021. Deep dive → Zephyrnet
🇬🇧 Asos launches sample sale website for its own-brand products for £5. The launch is as part of its plans to "right-size its stock portfolio". Deep dive → Drapersonline
😲 Maze of the week
40% market share that used fashion could reach (from current 3-5%) according to Vestiaire asserts
🍔 Food marketplaces
🇺🇸 DoorDash, Uber Eats and Grubhub sue New York City over the minimum-wage law. Beginning on July 12, delivery apps must pay drivers about $18 per hour they are active on the app. Deep dive → Business insider
🇨🇦 DoorDash to provide $10,000 grants to disaster-ravaged restaurants in Canada in partnership with Global Entrepreneurship Network. Deep dive →Biv
🇦🇺 Uber eats to invest USD 17M in high-visibility safety gear for more than 150,000 delivery riders in Australia and New Zealand. Deep dive → Yahoo news
🇮🇳 Swiggy enhances customer experience using generative AI to create customized food images based on specific requirements on their platform, and this is helping them serve millions of customers. Deep dive → Analytics India Mag
🇪🇺 Bolt names a new CFO in preparation for IPO. Bolt expects to become profitable in the next 12 months and be ready for an IPO in 2025. Deep dive → Reuters
🇬🇧 Deliveroo to turn 200 London e-scooters into digital advertising displays in a partnership with Ad-MOTO. Deep dive → Verdict food service
🇬🇧 Uber Eats partners with PizzaExpress to launch a new pizza delivery platform. The pizza restaurant chain will allow customers to place their orders through PizzaExpress’ website or app. The order will then be delivered by Uber Eats. Deep dive → Qsr media
📦Various marketplaces
🇺🇸 Expedia launches one key unified rewards program in the US. Members to earn and use rewards on bookings through the company’s leading brands. Deep dive → Phocus wire
🇮🇳 Standard Chartered to develop B2B marketplace offerings in partnership with KI group. Deep dive → Retail Bank international
🇩🇪 Volkswagen pushes the marketplace for dealers in Germany. Local dealers can now sell their vehicles online at Volkswagen.de. Deep dive → Volkswagen
🇬🇷 Leroy Merlin to launch a marketplace in Greece in 2024, which will focus exclusively on equipment and home goods. The new Greece CEO sheds light on company's local strategy. Deep dive → Business news
🇳🇱 Kruidvat plans to launch drugstore marketplace later this year. This would mean it would follow its British sister chain Superdrug steps, as Superdrug announced a similar move last year. Deep dive → Retail trends | Internet retailing
🇩🇪 DocMorris has filed a complaint with the European Commission regarding the ban on prescription medicine bonuses. Online pharmacies still lack a mandatory, fully digital redemption channel for e-prescriptions. The EU Commission dropped its infringement proceedings against Germany, which was set to introduce it from January 2022. Deep dive → Market screener
😲 Maze of the week
Booking.com with Australia of listings. There are 28M accommodations listed on the booking.com vs 26M people living in Australia
That’s all. See you next week!
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Author
Artur Stańczuk is a Chief Strategy Officer at Packhelp, the leading European packaging marketplace. Previously worked ~8 years at Bain & Co. In the past, Digital Transformation Director at the leading Polish convenience chain Żabka and Entrepreneur that co-launched 3 start-ups
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