The impact of online shopping on logistics

New research into the effects of online shopping on our high streets shows that retailers need to dramatically change the way they operate – from product availability to their physical stores and locations

According to logistics property consultancy Atisreal retailers have a major opportunity to take advantage of e-Shopping opportunities but only if they change how goods bought online are delivered to consumers.

According to Atisreal, almost two-thirds of UK consumers (62%) would choose a retailer offering home deliveries specified to the hour over one that does not when buying goods on the internet; and over half (52%) would do so if offered the opportunity to use local centres where goods could be collected or returned at their convenience.

New research into the effects of online shopping on our high streets shows that retailers need to dramatically change the way they operate – from product availability to their physical stores and locations

According to logistics property consultancy Atisreal retailers have a major opportunity to take advantage of e-Shopping opportunities but only if they change how goods bought online are delivered to consumers.

According to Atisreal, almost two-thirds of UK consumers (62%) would choose a retailer offering home deliveries specified to the hour over one that does not when buying goods on the internet; and over half (52%) would do so if offered the opportunity to use local centres where goods could be collected or returned at their convenience.

Ian Parish, head of retail agency at Atisreal, says:

“Online sales continued to grow dramatically in December but tailed off in the immediate pre-Christmas period. This was partly due to retailers not being prepared to guarantee deliveries in time for Christmas and partly because people just do not have the time to sit at home waiting for goods they’ve ordered online to be delivered. As a result many retailers were not able to exploit fully the tremendous opportunities e-Shopping now provides at a time when consumer spending on the High Street is falling.”

Parish believes that retailers who address these issues will be well-placed in what is a highly competitive sector. He continues:

“There’s no doubt that consumers love the convenience of internet shopping and most traditional retailers now offer an online shopping experience. Retailers that extend this experience through to the delivery – and return of unwanted or unsuitable goods bought online – will gain dramatic competitive advantage.”

The changes envisaged by Atisreal have significant implications not only for retailers but also the way people shop. For instance, they could lead to the introduction of centres where consumers can collect and return goods bought online at their convenience. This is likely to see the development of buildings dedicated to such tasks or, in more rural areas, the use of existing properties extended to offer such services, such as petrol stations.

Paradoxically, Atisreal’s Parish believes such developments resulting from the need to fulfil online shopping could lead to an increase in the use of traditional, physical stores. He concludes:

“Consumers understandably want home deliveries specified to the hour, but this can be expensive and virtually impossible to achieve in urban areas where traffic flows are complex and can be very unpredictable. However, our research has identified that consumers would also be very happy with the provision of collection and return centres into which they could pop, say, on the way to or from work. Ironically, the development of such centres in or close to retail outlets would very likely lead to higher traditional retail sales.”

It was very obvious from the Christmas period that the Internet winners would be the ones who could carry on delivering until the last moment, or provide the facility to let users pick the goods up in store. Argos are past masters of this and it will be interesting to see when their results are given out this week just how successful there Christmas period was although early news is that Home Retail is expected to announce flat sales at Argos chain and a dip at Homebase.