Belgian ecommerce top 10 dominated by foreign players

Ecommerce in Belgium is still being dominated by foreign online retailers. Last year, the biggest online turnover was achieved by Dutch ecommerce giant Bol.com, followed by Coolblue (also from the Netherlands) and Amazon France. In the top 10, there are only two Belgian players.

The top 10 of biggest ecommerce companies in Belgium comes from the Ecommerce Foundation, which compared the revenue of online retailers in 2018. Last year, just like in the Netherlands, Bol.com was the biggest player. In Belgium, the Ahold-owned company achieved sales worth 386 million euros. The company is followed by omnichannel retailer Coolblue, that had a turnover of 322 million euros in Belgium.

Top 10 of online retailers in Belgium. Source: Ecommerce Foundation (via Gondola)

Amazon has three websites in ecommerce top 10

In Belgium, and also in the Netherlands by the way, the ecommerce industry still isn’t being dominated by Amazon as much as in other Western European countries. But still, the US company’s influence can be felt. In the Belgian ecommerce top 10, Amazon France ended on the third place, while Amazon.com ranks sixth and Amazon Germany can be found on the ninth place.

Crossborder ecommerce in Belgium

The research also shows that Belgian consumers aren’t afraid of shopping crossborder. Most online shoppers (58 percent) buy products online in Belgium and abroad. Only 28 percent only shops at domestic ecommerce websites, while 16 percent actually only shops abroad.

And when Belgians shop abroad, they mostly do at online stores in the Netherlands (34 percent). Other popular shopping destinations are China (16 percent), Germany (15 percent) and the United Kingdom (10 percent).

Most consumers don’t mind waiting for delivery

The trend in ecommerce seems to be to have parcels sent to customers in a record time, but the Belgian consumer still seems quite patient. Although 21 percent expects to receive a parcel on the next day or the day after, 58 percent is happy to receive a parcel within three to five days. And for one in eight consumers delivery might even take up six days.

See also: Top 10 online stores in Belgium