Postnord: the state of online retailing in Sweden

Swedish online delivery company Postnord publishes a very interesting report on the state of online retailing in Sweden every quarter. The overall sentiment in the report is that customers have been reducing online spending in most categories.

According to Statistics Sweden figures, online has declined for the last five quarters. However, the sales index for online retailing increased again in July and August.

Health & beauty dominating online spending

Of the main retail categories, it has become the biggest category online, surpassing fashion. Health & beauty is also growing in other markets and channels. In Sweden, the growth for health & beauty is driven especially by the pharmacy channel that has rapidly moved to online in Sweden.

The DIY sector is declining rapidly. Again, this can be seen in other retailing markets and channels. In other parts of retailing, there is slight growth or decline.

Customers use Click & Collect but would prefer something else also

Regarding delivery methods, 45% of Swedish customers use a Click & Collect representative, where someone hands the order to the customer.

Home delivery methods of postbox delivery and porch delivery (leave outside the door) are second and third, with around 20% of customers using the methods.

However, despite the popularity of Click & Collect, customers would prefer using home delivery methods almost as much. Supposedly, the home delivery methods are priced much higher, leaving the customers to use the Click & Collect.

The fourth popular delivery option, the Click & Collect locker, has seen a dramatic uptick in interest. In Q2/2019, only 5% of respondents would have preferred to have the order delivered to a Click & Collect locker. Three years later, that figure has increased to 19%. In big cities, the number goes even higher, to 24%.

The main reasons customers state for the interest towards the Click & Collect lockers are flexibility and convenience.

This is a rare area where Finland leads Sweden and other European countries. The Click & Collect lockers are the most popular mode of delivery due to the vast networks of lockers built by the market leader Posti.