SHOPIFY UNVEILS FIRST STATE OF COMMERCE REPORT

Shopify has released its first global State of Commerce report with insights on what’s driving direct-to-consumer (DTC) commerce and buying behavior. Over the last year, the retail industry has experienced tremendous disruption, and within this changed retail landscape, customers and merchants have found new opportunities to buy and sell goods.

“It’s our mission to make commerce better for everyone, and we developed this report to share global insights that can help merchants better understand the needs of their customers,” said Harley Finkelstein, chief operating officer at Shopify. “At Shopify we’re inspiring the next wave of independent business owners with the tools and insights they need to succeed. We’ll continue to share more of these reports as Shopify becomes the default platform to build a business and drive commerce globally.”

In its new State of Commerce report, the commerce platform reveals key findings including:

It’s a battle for brand loyalty, but the winners see more repeat buyers: Over 62 million buyers around the world have bought from the same Shopify store twice, with buyers purchasing 3.8 times on average from the same store.

Shoppers love a good excuse to buy, especially holidays, but sales drop off in February: November is the most popular shopping month worldwide, while February is the least active and January rings up the largest year-over-year growth outside of the holiday season.

Americans shop most frequently, Germans the fastest, and Japanese shoppers are the biggest spenders: Consumers in the U.S. buy nearly twice as much (6 items) as any other country (2-3 items); buyers in Germany make the fastest online shopping decisions, making a purchase in less than 18 minutes; while Japanese consumers spend the most per transaction, around $142 USD on average, compared to the U.S. at around $81.

Mobile, tablet or desktop? Geography impacts how buyers purchase: Consumers in Brazil choose mobile over desktop, while buyers in Denmark, Ireland, Malaysia, Morocco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore and Vietnam purchase on tablets more than mobile. However, buyers in the US, Australia, Canada, China and the UK purchase in equal volume across tablets, desktop and mobile.

Social media drives discovery but it’s not where most shoppers buy: Online storefronts represent over 80 percent of sales, followed by point of sale (POS).

For all the insights from Shopify’s State of Commerce report, download it here.