Pressure mounts on offline retailers as coronavirus sparks online boom

UK retailers without an e-commerce presence need to overhaul their business models as Brits plan to spend more online in a post-Covid-19 world, according to GlobalData.

The company surveyed 2,000 people and found that 26% will do this after the coronavirus restrictions are lifted. Retailers with a limited (or no) online proposition must therefore consider investment in order to remain competitive.

Thomas Brereton, Retail Analyst at GlobalData, says: “Almost all non-food physical retailers in the UK have suffered immensely from the closure of stores, and will be eagerly awaiting government updates on plans to reopen at the start of June (at the earliest).”

“But Covid-19 is drawing a permanent scar on the landscape of UK retail, and one that easing restrictions will not heal. 42.6% of UK shoppers are spending more than usual online at the moment (predominantly on food, household, clothing and entertainment).”

“However, of those, 61% plan to keep doing so after the pandemic, driven by the convenience home delivery offers or the fear of travelling to busy shopping locations. And as the online channel grows, pressure will mount on offline retailers to retain sales – for some players, to fatal levels.”

Primark

In March, GlobalData argued that Primark was running the risk of losing the top spot in the UK clothing market due to its lack of a transactional website.

The retailer has been working to make sure stores are ready for reopening as soon as they safely can when restrictions are relaxed, with store managers and assistants visiting sites last week to complete administrative work.

“Nothing matters more to us than the health and wellbeing of our employees and customers," a spokesman told Mirror Money.

"That is why we will only reopen our stores in the UK once we are convinced that it is safe and right to do so. We are closely following all safety advice from government and will treat this as the minimum standard across all our stores.”