The ‘2021 Small Business Recovery’ study surveyed small and medium businesses (SMBs) in the UAE, KSA, Egypt, and Pakistan to understand how they have evolved in the way they do business to manage the impact of the coronavirus on their bottom line. The study also revealed the spending trends merchants claim define the COVID-19 business environment – these include increased use of contactless payments (93% of merchants), takeaways (87%), and home delivery (78%).
More than a third of retailers (38%) in the UAE that were surveyed said they have established an online presence in response to COVID-19. Nearly 9 in 10 (86%) believe that online shopping will remain a preference even after the crisis.
In order to prepare for future uncertainties, 20% of UAE merchants surveyed who currently do not have an online presence said they are planning to build an ecommerce platform and a third are planning to offer contactless payments and digital prepayment options to customers. In fact, merchants who only accept cash are planning to set up POS terminals within the next two years (28%) and invest in new digital payment technologies (31%).
Most UAE merchants (82%) said their investments in digital payments had paid off and will play a major role in their business recovery.
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