The findings are highlighted in the fourth independent annual survey of the ecommerce market for small and medium-sized retail enterprises in the UK, carried out by ecommerce software vendor Actinic.
With demand currently growing much faster than supply, the opportunity for retailers is greater now than during the dot.com boom. The report shows that relatively few are cashing in but those that do are seeing their profits rise. Amongst those making most of increased online spending are entrepreneurs and small companies with less than 10 employees.
The survey found that 40% of ecommerce businesses are on-line start-ups and that a dominant 75% of all ecommerce sites are run by companies with 10 employees or less.
Those businesses that already had a website were also more likely to be using ecommerce as a means of trading.
The report also indicated a significant leap in the percentage of retail ecommerce sites that are profitable - rising from 53% in 2003 to 72% this year.
Overall, however, only 3% of all retailers have an online sales channel. The continued growth in online shopping means there's a real risk of consumer choice being limited because of some vendors' resistance to ecommerce adoption.
Chris Barling, CEO of Actinic says, "Surveys over the last year have consistently found that online spending is growing rapidly, but that's only one side of the coin. Just as importantly, our results show that ecommerce profitability is growing too - the low overheads compared to a high street outlet make selling online especially attractive to startups and micro-businesses. But what I find disappointing is that the vast majority of retail businesses are not taking advantage of this golden opportunity to increase their sales, profits and customer base."
The companies not adopting ecommerce to boost their profits blamed a lack of resources.
Aug 18, 2004
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