Report analyses the impact of COVID-19 on ecommerce and retail

The report uncovers current thinking towards COVID’s impact on the high street, the concept of a cashless society and the alternative payment methods that are currently being utilised in Germany, The Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Poland and the UK.

Combining answers from respondents across all countries in the PXP Financial research, over half (55%) of all participants think the high street was already on the decline before the pandemic, 41% would feel positively about a cashless society and 48% have tried contactless because of the pandemic. Other forms of mobile transactions such as wallets and wearable payment forms also increased, further adding pressure on retailers to have the necessary payment systems to process mobile transactions going forward. 

The report highlights that if merchants use solutions which can generate data insights from customer payments, they can quickly identify how best to optimise the retail experience for their customers – whether that is through targeted personalised promotions, in-store-only redemption of rewards, or online discounts. Only by getting a deeper understanding of their customers will merchants be able to foster deeper loyalty and greater sales volume. 

By and large consumers were already adapting their purchasing behaviour in line with the growth of ecommerce. While the pandemic has accelerated the shift towards online shopping, the bricks-and-mortar high street is still regarded fondly by shoppers, and retailers can still count on the loyalty of their customers. But it’s more important than ever for those retailers to ensure that shoppers have the widest possible choice of payment methods which should be considered in retailer strategies going forward.