The Netherlands

Ecommerce in the Netherlands was worth 25.8 billion euros last year. This is an increase of 7 percent compared to the situation one year before. The Dutch online retail industry grew mostly because of an increase in online grocery purchases.

Amazon has officially launched in the Netherlands. Instead of selling only e-books and e-readers, the ecommerce giant now offers all kinds of products. With product categories such as consumer electronics, toys, fashion, DIY and foodstuff it's going to compete with local players Bol.com, Coolblue and Wehkamp.

Coolblue has generated total sales of 1.48 billion euros last year, which is an increase of 10 percent compared to the situation one year before. Its adjusted EBITDA increased by 28 percent to 34.5 million euros.

De Bijenkorf, a major omnichannel retailer from the Netherlands, might be looking for further expansion across Europe. The retailer has posted job offers, in which it's looking for native French speakers.

Moteefe, a Dutch platform for on-demand production of merchandise, has raised 5 million dollars (4.54 million euros) in a Series A round led by Gresham House and Force Over Mass Capital. The money will be used for further expansion across the globe, launching new products for large retailers and scaling its operations.

Girav, a Dutch startup specialized in extra long T-shirts for men, is going abroad. The ecommerce company has opened an online store in Germany.

Bol.com, the biggest online store in the Netherlands, is opening its platform for external vendors that sell men's and women's clothing. The move follows one week after Amazon announced it will open its platform in the Netherlands for third party sellers.

Charlie Temple, an optical online retailer from the Netherlands, has expanded to Belgium and Austria. For the fast-growing ecommerce scale-up in prescription glasses these are the second and third new market, after it also expanded to Germany last year.

Amazon has officially announced it will launch an online store in the Netherlands. That's why it is now opening its doors to external vendors. Both Dutch and foreign sellers can now register if they want to sell their products on Amazon.nl.

Takeaway has finally acquired Just Eat. For months, the Dutch company had been trying to take over its competitor. But Naspers was also trying to acquire Just Eat. Now, the stakeholders have accepted the offer from Takeaway.

Consumers in the Netherlands have the dubious honor to be the ones that send most online purchases back. Again. In the Netherlands, there's a return rate of 13 percent, which is more than in countries such as Germany, Poland and Switzerland.

Fashion brand Chiquelle is moving its warehouse operations. Currently these are located in Arlandastad, outside Stockholm, but after the Christmas holidays, the Swedish company will move its warehouse to the Netherlands.

Gadero, an online shop for wood and wooden furniture, has expanded its ecommerce activities to the French-speaking market in Western Europe. The Dutch retailer will now deliver wood to Wallonia, Luxembourg and some northern parts of France.

European countries hold eight of the top ten spots on the B2C E-commerce Index of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. This list ranks countries on their reading to engage in ecommerce. Europe remains, by far, the most prepared region for ecommerce.

Online supermarket Picnic has raised 250 million euros in a new investment round. The Dutch company wants to use this money to build a robotized distribution center of 42,000 square meters.