Ecommerce in the Nordic region increasing steadily - report

This corresponds to an increase of approximately USD 300 million (SEK 2.5 billion), compared with the same period of 2014, according to PostNord’s report E-Commerce in the Nordic Region. People in the Nordic region are shopping online more and more: between January and April, 2015, ecommerce increased by 7% compared with 2014.

The Danes surpassed the Norwegians as the population that shops online the most (76% and 75%, respectively), but the percentage also increased slightly in Sweden and Norway. Almost half of all people in the Nordic region consider it very important to be able to choose the delivery method of their purchases. Recipient power is valued highest in Denmark, where over one third of online shoppers consider it very important to be able to choose how an item will be delivered.

In Denmark and Sweden, about one third of ecommerce consumers expect their purchase to be delivered within three days. In Norway, one fourth of consumers expect the same delivery time, and in Finland, one third are open to waiting up to five days. Preferences for how an item purchased online will be delivered vary among the Nordic countries. However, the most popular option for all countries is to pick up the item from their partner outlet.

In Sweden, Norway and Finland, about half of all consumers want to pick up the item themselves. In Denmark, where home deliveries are more common, only one fifth want to go to a service point themselves. Generally speaking, interest in home deliveries in the evening is low in all countries. Most people in the Nordic region still shop online using a computer, but more and more consumers are shopping via cell phone.

A clear trend compared with2014 is that more and more Nordic ecommerce consumers are choosing to shop online using their cell phone. The percentage continues to be highest in Sweden, but the development shows an increase in purchases made via cell phone in almost all Nordic countries. In Denmark, online purchases via cell phone increased by 5% to 15% in 2015, thus surpassing the Nordic average. 17% shopped via cell phone in Sweden, 12% in Norway and 8% in Finland.

In Sweden and Norway, the most common goods to buy online were media such as books, magazines and CDs, whereas In Denmark and Finland, the most popular items to buy online were clothes and shoes. The UK, US, Germany and China still top the list by far when people in the Nordic region shop from abroad. In the Nordic region, Sweden is still the leading country for shopping from abroad. However, Swedes do not shop very much from their neighboring countries. Clothes and shoes are the most popular items to buy from abroad.

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