The stringent lockdown in France has boosted ecommerce dramatically as consumers purchase more products online and make fewer in-store trips.
According to the Fédération du e-commerce et de la vente à distance (FEVAD), retail ecommerce sales in France declined in March 2020 but recovered rapidly in April. Across 40 digital retailers surveyed, ecommerce sales (excluding grocery) were up between 11% and 21% in April. Retailers of tech and entertainment products reported sales gains of 26% to 27%, compared with the beginning of March. If grocery sales were included, April ecommerce sales would have posted even greater increases.
“Crucially, many consumers don’t anticipate reverting to pre-pandemic buying behavior after the crisis abates,” said Karin von Abrams, eMarketer principal analyst at Insider Intelligence and author of our latest report, “France Ecommerce 2020.”
In an April 2020 GlobalWebIndex survey, 23% of internet users in France ages 16 to 64 said they expected to visit physical stores less frequently post-pandemic, and 27% planned to spend less time in-store. Some 15% of respondents said they would adopt click and collect, and 17% would shop more online for home delivery.