Irish retail moves to ecommerce

Retailers in Ireland are migrating online as the outbreak of the coronavirus has fueled ecommerce in the Western European country. Online sales are now a significant part of the retail offering for thousands of Irish companies.

That’s what Danny Hughes, CEO of courier company Fastway Couriers, has told the Irish Independent. His company saw an increase in the volume of 70 percent this year. Although most of the growth was from UK shipments to Ireland, there was also a part coming from an expansion of domestic-only shipping.

1,200 new customers for courier company

The courier company has added 1,200 Irish business customers to the 3,000 it already has. According to Hughes, most of these companies are transitioning to online sales channels. Some customers even increased their ecommerce shipping by 80 percent.

Some Irish businesses increased their ecommerce shipping by 80 percent.

Sales are still 15-20% above expectation

Starting in March, the courier company saw a significant surge for three months. Now sales have fallen back, but are still 15 to 20 percent above expectation. People are still buying online, as retailers have been promoting ecommerce in light of the pandemic outbreak.

Relatively low ecommerce penetration in Ireland

Hughes thinks the high growth rates of Fastway Couriers are due to the relatively low penetration of ecommerce in Ireland, in contrast to other markets where it operates, such as the United Kingdom. “Most business-to­consumer shipping in Ireland still originates in the UK, which makes up the bulk of online retail sales we handle here.”

Most business-to­consumer shipping in Ireland still originates in the UK.

Ecommerce share: 4.4% in August

The Irish Independent writes that ecommerce in Ireland fell back nearly to pre-Covid levels in August. This suggest consumers are not fully staying away from physical retail stores just jet. And data from the Central Statistiscs Office show that the ecommerce share of total retail sales went from 3.5 percent in February, to 15.3 percent in April to just 4.4 percent in August.