Ah, the online store! That’s what it’s all about in the ecommerce industry, right? In this category you’ll find articles about several online stores throughout Europe. It could be an article about an online store has been launched or about online stores in general in a certain country. So check out this category if you’re specifically interested in online stores.
The Netherlands has more than 100,000 online stores. This figure comes from the latest quarterly report from Statistics Netherlands. At least this number of companies have online sales as their main activity, but the number is increasing. The amount of online stores with a broad product range increased 14 percent last year.
Nine out of ten Dutch employers in ecommerce are missing digital skills among the people who work for them. Especially in the areas of cybersecurity and innovative technologies, the shortcomings are significant. Employers expect that in the coming years, it will remain difficult to keep up with the development pace of AI.
Afound, H&M’s digital outlet, will be closing its doors later this year. Brands that are displayed in the outlet have adapted more direct-to-consumer strategies, resulting in a lack of demand. Their products in sale are often sold on their own websites.
As of September 2nd, TikTok Shop sellers based in the United Kingdom will need to pay higher commission fees. The fees are being raised from 5 to 9 percent. However, if sellers reach a target number of TikTok Live and shoppable videos, they can reduce these fees.
The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) Europe has published its measurement standards for retail media in Europe. This gives brands a framework to measure the effectiveness of their digital advertising campaigns. It is a first step in IAB Europe’s plans to create industry standards for retail media.
Asos has suffered a significant loss in turnover, down by 18 percent in the first half of its fiscal year. The British pure online player has taken drastic measures and believes that, partly due to faster production processes, it will be able to return to profitability in the next fiscal year.
Online sales in Italy are estimated at 80.55 billion euros in 2023. This is an increase of 27.14 percent compared to a year before. On average, Italian online stores grew almost 29 percent in terms of turnover.
On January 1st of this year, there were just over 101 thousand active online stores in the Netherlands. This means that the amount of online stores has more than tripled there in the last decade. Additionally, the amount of SMEs in this sector grew 252 percent during that period.
Online net sales in Sweden reached 11.75 billion euros last year. This is a slight decrease, of 2 percent, compared to a year earlier when net sales reached 12 billion euros. However, it seems that annual net sales in the country are stabilizing.
At least 70 percent of small and medium sized business owners in Europe admit to lacking the confidence needed to scale their business in the digital realm. A large group of them needs help in optimizing their logistics, while others need assistance in VAT and customs compliance.
After two years, Mango has stopped selling other brands on its own marketplace. The Spanish fashion retailer had been offering products from brands like Rituals through its own channels. This decision comes after Mango recorded an online sales growth close to 10 percent during the first half of 2023.
Online-only supermarket Picnic is expanding its product range with the help of Edeka, a German chain of supermarkets. It is adding drugstore items and wants to become a drugstore in Germany. The complete drugstore segment will be up and running by the end of this year.
Action, the discount retailer from the Netherlands, is launching its online store in Belgium. The online shop is available in Dutch and French. Action will offer around 150 products. The product range mostly consists of large items such as garden furniture.
After red numbers in the first and second quarter, Dutch marketplace Bol.com made 1,2 billion euros in revenue in Q3. That is an increase of 5,6 percent. This is mostly thanks to its 51.000 third-party sellers, who account for nearly 60 percent of sales.
Last year, Belgian trade association BeCommerce launched a project called Ezyshop. At least 2,140 companies signed up to receive individual coaching sessions. According to the organization, Belgian retailers need extra support and the government should help.