According to the most recent study by the firm NielsenIQ, electronic commerce became “the accelerator of retail growth in Colombia and the world.” According to the analysis, currently 54% of consumers would rather browse virtual aisles than shop in physical stores“a trend that until a few years ago seemed unlikely, but that has accelerated due to the pandemic,” the firm highlighted.
(Internet habits: what Colombians do most on the web).
Likewise, the study specified that e-commerce has had an “incomparable” evolution in the region. This is how five out of ten Latinos prefer online shopping, while 17% of them opt for digital stores to buy mass consumption products (PCM).
For its part, the study explained that in Colombia, electronic commerce has gone through different stages. At the first peak of the pandemic there was a virtual boom, a time when online purchases were preferred, “representing a growth of up to 238%”. Later, in 2021 there was a significant drop, which was recovered, “driven by the strong demand for alternatives that would allow the contact points to be reduced, limit the risks of contracting coronavirus and take advantage of offer instances to reactivate the economy, such as days without VAT.”
However, in the first five months of 2022, the report highlighted that e-commerce in the country has grown by 5.1%, compared to the same period in 2021, and it is expected that “this good performance will continue in the coming months. The categories with the greatest increase were Home appliances (23%) and pharmacies (7%)”.
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