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~ Pattern ~

Consumers flocked online when physical stores were closed, and new research from Pattern
suggests that this change in buying behaviour is here to stay.

tore closures in countries around the world due As shoppers struggled to get products from their normal
to COVID pushed consumers online. Many of retail channels, particularly physical stores, they looked
S those involved with cross-border e-commerce will further afield. 40% of UK online shoppers said they bought
have seen an increase in sales during 2020 as shoppers non-food products online in 2020 that they previously
struggled to get hold of the goods they wanted. would have purchased in physical stores; the number was
32% among German shoppers. Amazon was one of the
As a seller on Amazon across Europe, we wanted to prime beneficiaries of this change in behaviour; 39% of UK
understand whether the swing to shopping online was shoppers and 36% of German shoppers reported that they
temporary and if those sales would swing back to stores once bought more non-food products from Amazon.
they were open again and social distancing measures had
eased. When we asked them to predict how they would shop in
2021, the results indicated that the shift is here to stay.
In February 2021, Pattern surveyed consumers in both 34% of UK online shoppers and 29% of German online
the UK and Germany to understand how their shopping shoppers say they will buy non-food products online
behaviour changed during the pandemic and their that previously they would purchase in stores. 28% of
expectations for whether they would continue to shop online UK shoppers and 30% of German shoppers specifically
during the rest of the year. reported that they would buy more non-food products
from Amazon.
The results highlight how the pandemic has permanently
changed buying behaviour and indicates that online sales – Only 31% of German shoppers and 33% of UK shoppers
and particularly sales on Amazon – will continue to vastly expected there to be no further changes to their shopping
outpace online sales growth in these key European markets. behaviour in 2021. 29% of UK online shoppers and 26%
of German online shoppers expect to buy from different
Shoppers are staying online online retailers than they have used previously, and
In both the UK and Germany, shoppers reported having so there is a clear opportunity for online retailers and
bought more online during 2020, and this comes as no consumer brands with direct-to-consumer sites to acquire
surprise. 54% of UK online shoppers and 46% of German new customers this year; while online shoppers are likely
online shoppers reported that they bought more online in more receptive to buying from online stores for the first
2020 than in previous years. time.

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