Shoppers high-tail to local e-tailers

By PETER GRIFFIN

Internet users turned to homegrown e-tailers in numbers over the holidays, as user-friendly websites and faster delivery times made shopping online a more enjoyable experience.

Internet monitoring service Hitwise says 37 per cent of all traffic to shopping and classifieds sites headed to local sites last month - a clear sign that local e-tailers are becoming more competitive against international offerings.

Consumers are turning to the web as shopping online becomes a more reliable process, says Rick Boven, e-commerce director at Boston Consulting Group.

"New Zealanders are becoming increasingly confident that the local e-tailing industry can satisfy their needs.

"Online retailers have a long way to go but they are getting much closer to delivering what customers demand," said Mr Boven.

Boston Consulting carried out a survey before Christmas to test how effective New Zealand online retailers were at delivering gifts. The consulting firm spent $500 at 19 different e-tailers and found most were able to deliver in time for Christmas and provide added services such as gift wrapping and Christmas cards.

Of the e-tailers scrutinised by Boston Consulting, nearly all used couriers for rapid delivery of goods.

The transition from mail to couriers as the primary means of delivering goods has pushed the average delivery cost to $4.76, but most customers now receive their goods within three days.

The key to New Zealand's growing enthusiasm for buying online is the emergence of multi-channels, where retailers have both a physical shopfront and an online site.

Traditional "bricks and mortar" retailers such as The Warehouse and Liquor King are expected to make rapid gains this year as they use their powerful offline brands to promote their e-tail offerings.

But Mark Battles, chief executive at IT Media, which owns e-tailer FlyingPig.co.nz, says portals without a physical shopfront have a significant cost advantage.

"It's hard for a retailer like The Warehouse to offer discounted prices online because their retail prices are already heavily discounted. They also have an expensive job integrating their online offerings with their retail businesses."

While New Zealanders are turning on to the idea of buying online from local websites, not everyone's Christmas present arrived gift-wrapped and on time.

"One had an extremely high delivery cost of $20 and another was not working at all when we tried to shop," said Mr Boven.

Top 10 New Zealand e-tail sites during December:

Woolworths

Gamezone

Sony

ascent

Sounds NZ

Flying Pig

Renaissance

Whitcoulls Office

The Supermarket

Ezibuy

Source: Hitwise