Belgian e-commerce showed strong growth in 2011 with impressive Christmas sales, according to ane-retail sales index from the Belgian distance-selling organisation BeCommerce and consultants
Capgemini.The Belgian e-retail market has grown 70% since April 2010, with December business up by 24% andQ4 sales up by 19%, both year-on-year, the BeCommerce Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index showed. Incomparison to November, Belgian e-retail sales rose by 4.3% in December 2011.
The average sum spent online by Belgian retailers during December amounted to €149, up from €145in November. The average basket value of the retailers participating in the Index was €166 in2011.
Patricia Ceysens, President of BeCommerce, commented: “E-commerce has definitely broken throughin Belgium. As the most recent December figures show, total sales in Belgium in 2011 increasedaround 20 -25% outpacing the Netherlands and in line with our neighbours Germany and France. TheChristmas and St Nicolas’ Day period was particularly good and that on top of an already excellent2010. The Belgian consumer is getting more and more confident in shopping online. The reasons are:consumers want to avoid crowded shops, online shops are open 24/7 and shopping online is easy anddoes not take time and online shops offer a wide range of goods.”
Yannick Muriat, e-Retail Sales Index Lead at Capgemini Belgium, added: “As foreseen by the trendof our Index last month the Belgian “Christmas season” e-sales in December 2011 were successfulwith an impressive year-on-year increase of 24%.”
Seventeen e-retailers are already contributing to the BeCommerce Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index,including Bivolino, Carrefour, CASS Shapewear, Damart, Fatboy, Goedkope Vliegtuigtickets, JolillyBodywear, La Redoute, Libelle Shop, Manutan, Neckermann, PIXmania, Snapstore by Cameleon, Tones.beand Unigro. All reputable e-merchants of all sizes in Belgium can participate in the BeCommerceCapgemini e-Retail Sales Index which aims to become the main performance indicator of the Belgianonline shopping industry.
Belgian postal operator bpost is increasingly targeting the e-commerce market with variousactivities. Last year it teamed up with telecoms provider Belgacom and Google to encourage moreBelgian SMEs to build up e-commerce activities and thus generate more parcels for delivery. Thethree companies launched a joint campaign called ‘Your Business Online’ offering website creation,advertising support and cut-price parcel delivery in response to the low proportion of Belgian SMEstrading through the internet. In November 2011, bpost signed an agreement with its Chinesee-commerce partner Trade2CN to create a two-way B2C online trading platform giving e-retailersbetter access to consumers in Europe and China.
BeCommerce operates in distance selling, both online (via Internet, mobile commerce, TV) andoffline (via catalogues, direct mail, telephone, SMS, TV etc.). The association said it will buildon the growth of the sector and continue strengthening consumer confidence in distance sellingthrough information, promotion (BeCommerce Awards), education (BeCommerce-academy), certificationof ecommerce sites (BeCommerce Quality label) and a code of conduct. BeCommerce has 200 members and30 business partners.
Capgemini is one of the leading global providers of consulting, technology and outsourcingservices enabling its clients to transform and perform through technologies.
