Welcome to the new spice route, the internet! The local buyers market has become the world. According to Paypal cross border shopping has taken off similar to the spice routes of old. It is easy to forget how much buying and selling has changed. Before we were limited to what we could buy in our own country but now we can buy or sell without having to set foot on foreign soil.
Around 16% of online spend is cross border with the most popular destination the US. Overseas customers are most worried about fraud so buyer protection is important (Paypal gets their plug here.) Of course the most used payment method was Paypal!
For retailers these customers are great as they are not just looking for a discount but are seeking quality and authenticity. Even though the spice routes are global they are still regional with German shoppers tending to buy from Austria while mainland Chinese buy from Japan and Hong Kong.
Mobile shopping is also a driver and has been taken up most in China with 14 million mobile cross border shoppers making up 74% of the cross border population. These numbers are expected to double by 2018. Chinese and Brazilian buyers were particularly keen to be protected showing more concern over security than others. Given our location it should be no surprise that Australians value free shipping over quality and variety!
Jason
Disclosure: Decisive has a long position in eBay (EBAY) stock which owns Paypal
The material in this article is for informational purposes only and in no way constitutes a solicitation of business or investment advice. The material has been prepared without regard to any client's or other person's investment objectives. Before making an investment decision you should consider the assistance of a financial adviser and whether any investment or service is appropriate in light of your particular investment needs.
