As seen in My Total Retail
The pandemic created long-term structural changes to consumer buying behavior and accelerated retail e-commerce by an estimated five years to 10 years. In a recent Alvarez & Marsal Consumer and Retail Group survey, 85 percent of consumers indicated they will maintain their shopping habits post-pandemic, which bodes well for marketplaces.
Alvarez & Marsal estimates retail e-commerce will reach a staggering $5 trillion by 2025, with marketplaces representing the lion’s share of that figure. In 2020, marketplaces were greater than 50 percent of all e-commerce sales in the U.S.
A large selection of items from multiple brands, with convenience and competitive pricing, is the reason behind marketplace growth. Given the importance of marketplaces to the e-commerce landscape, most brands no longer have the option of ignoring marketplaces. So how should companies think of the marketplace as the new channel and win with consumers?