The United Kingdom

Paul Marchant, CEO of Irish fast-fashion retailer Primark, doesn't agree with claims that the coronavirus has made shoppers move permanently to online shopping. He calls people claiming there's an inevitable and permanent shift to ecommerce "wrong and naïve".

Engineering distributor group Troy UK has launched a new B2B2C platform. The platform, called Troy Commerce, allows members to procure products from the Order hub, but also enables them to design their own ecommerce stores.

Heroes, a company from the United Kingdom, has raised 65 million dollars (55 million euros) in a round led by Fuel Ventures and 360 Capital Partners. The company acquires, operates and scales small and medium-sized ecommerce brands that sell on Amazon.

Bookshop.org is a new initiative that wants to support local independent booksellers. After a successful launch in the US earlier this year, the platform has now launched in the United Kingdom.

The usage of PayPal in Europe is highest in the United Kingdom. That country counted more than 330,000 daily active PayPal users last year.

Royal Mail has launched a new service, called Parcel Collect, across the United Kingdom. Its postmen and postwomen will now not only deliver parcels on their daily round, but also collect them as well.

About four in ten Brits (39 percent) have signed up for a paid subscription scheme or delivery pass, which means they pay a monthly fee to get free delivery and other extras. And among these schemes, Amazon Prime is the most popular paid subscription service.

DPD UK has revealed that over 3,000 parcel shops from Collect+ will be added to its network of pick-up points. The deal will expand the network to over 6,000 stores nationwide.

Nowadays, the average shopper in the United Kingdom spends 83 pounds (about 91.5 euros) per month online. Last year, this was 75 pounds (82.7 euros). The coronavirus outbreak has for sure contributed to this 11 percent year-on-year increase.

Dutch shipping software provider Sendcloud will be available in the United Kingdom starting today. The British expansion is a logical next step in the company's mission to offer its service across Europe. Previously, Sendcloud also expanded to Germany and France as well as other markets.

Online-only supermarket Picnic is planning to expand to the United Kingdom and France. As a result of the upcoming expansion, Picnic has exchanged its collaboration with purchasing organization Superunie for a deal with German supermarket chain Edeka.

Online shoppers in the United Kingdom are four times more likely to order from online marketplaces than direct from retailers. Over half of the 69 percent of shoppers who regularly buy online, do so via online marketplaces.

It's the end of an era for Argos fans. The retailer will stop printing its famous catalogue after almost 50 years. Of course, this is the result of its focus on ecommerce. The most recent Argos catalogue accounted for 3.9 million printed copies.

Amazon now offers its grocery delivery service Amazon Fresh in the United Kingdom free with Prime. Members can do their weekly shopping and choose from a selection of products. In over 40 postcodes in the South East, members can even place orders before 9pm and have them delivered same-day.

Department store chain John Lewis will almost double its number of click and collect points across the United Kingdom. The extension is the result of a partnership with the Co-op. For John Lewis, this is another effort to support growth in ecommerce.