People in the UK love to sell online

In the United Kingdom, 44 percent of adults add to their income by selling products or services online and 30 percent thinks they will do this regularly. And half of Britons would prefer to run an online store rather than a high street shop.

These are some of the results of a new survey by online shop software provider ePages among 1,012 UK adults. The United Kingdom is often called a nation of shopkeepers and the ecommerce participation study shows that this passion for retailing has perhaps become even more prevalent now everything is done online.

Ecommerce is popular among 25-34 year olds

Over 40 percent of Britons sold goods or skills online and among the people who are between 25 and 34 years old, this share is even 54 percent. Almost one in three adults expects to add to their income by selling goods online on a regular basis, while 36 percent would consider trying ecommerce as an activity. For one in five people, selling online is viewed as a way to achieve life goals and a better work/life balance.

‘Retail is democratized’

“The survey suggests a high participation level – today a large proportion of Britons are both keen and confident to become online merchants whenever the need arises. Affordable cloud-driven software, popular online marketplaces and easy payment methods have done a remarkable job of democratizing retail – enabling any level of computer user to advertise, communicate and transact online”, Wilfried Beeck, CEO at ePages, says.

The survey also shows that running an online store seems more popular than running a physical one. A quarter of respondents have considered setting up an online store and 50 percent would prefer to run solely an online store, while 27 percent would run both. Only 10 percent opted to run just a high street shop. Most respondents (43 percent) think an online shop alone is the way to sell the most, while 39 percent believes more in an omnichannel approach. Just 8 percent would choose to run a physical store alone.