Italian e-commerce sales have grown by 16% in 2018 to date, to €27.4 billion, with the food and grocery segment seeing a 34% growth to €1.1 billion, according to data from eCommerce B2c Observatory, promoted by the management school of the Milan polytechnic and Netcomm.
The penetration rate of online purchases on the total retail market rose from 5.7% in 2017 to 6.5% in 2018, representing growth of €3.8 billion.
Still Far Behind
However, according to the scientific manager of the eCommerce B2c Observatory, Riccardo Mangiaracina, Italy is still far behind the main European e-commerce markets, such as France, Germany, and the UK.
He also pointed out that the development of the Italian market relies on the growth of the food and grocery segment. Products in this segment are the first items of purchase for Italian consumers.
Regional Volumes
Northern Italy accounted for 56% of the volumes, followed by Central and Southern Italy (including the islands), at 23% and 21% respectively.
Online purchases generated through smartphones comprised 31% of the total e-commerce (25% in 2017) business, the study found.
Desktop and laptop computers remained the preferred device for online shopping, accounting for 62% of sales, while the share of sales recorded via tablets fell from 8% to 7%.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine
