// Online will account for half of non-food sales by 2025, adding £19.6bn of sales
// The huge jump in ecommerce is a consequence of the working from home revolution
Online will account for half (49.7%) of all non-food sales in just three years, according to new research by Retail Economics for ecommerce delivery tech firm Metapack.
An additional £19.6bn of online home deliveries is expected by 2025 as the working from home revolution accelerates the shift to ecommerce.
The Ecommerce Delivery Benchmark report, which used both proprietary data and findings from a panel of more than 6,000 consumers, showed that those that work more from home since the pandemic are twice as likely to have shifted more of their spending online permanently compared with those that have not experienced a change in workplace.
More than a quarter (27.3%) of UK shoppers expect to permanently shift more of their shopping online.
However, the lasting impact of Covid-19 will not be felt equally across all retail categories. The research predicts that apparel, homewares and health and beauty will experience a greater permanent shift online.
As a consequence of the ecommerce acceleration, more than a third (35.8%) of UK shoppers expect to visit stores less in the future. This is ahead of consumers in other countries, with 28.7% of Americans, 20.8% of Germans and 17.2% of French shoppers expecting to cut down on bricks-and-mortar shopping.
Metapack VP of global product Duncan Licence said: “Driven by the pandemic, online consumer shopping expectations have changed significantly over the last few years, and a lot of these changes are here to stay.
“It is expected that, as home working becomes the norm for more and more people, their appetite for fast, convenient, and easy deliveries that fit their lifestyle, will continue to increase.
“Retailers have reached a crossroads, they need to diversify their delivery options and invest in the right infrastructure and technology to meet the new needs of their consumers, or they will struggle to compete, especially as the shopping experience becomes synonymous with the delivery experience.”
READ MORE: Amazon UK sales revealed: Brits spent £23.6bn at online giant in 2021
The report delves into key consumer types and finds that the new wave of online shoppers are more demanding of speed of delivery, with more than a third (37.5%) valuing speed ahead of convenience, cost and carbon footprint of deliveries.
However, Retail Economics chief executive Richard Lim believes this new wave of digital shoppers are more willing to pay for deliveries.
“Although the demand for speed will put pressure on supply chains, home workers have both a greater ability and greater willingness to pay for delivery and returns compared to average online shoppers, which is critical for profitability amid rising costs and elevated customer expectations,” he said.
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