That’s how many Canadians seem to feel, as a new report from Forrester Research — compiled with support from Canada Post and Shop.ca — has found that Canadian retailers that have failed to establish a destination eCommerce website are at risk of losing the market permanently to more competitive international and U.S. businesses.
The survey, which polled more than 1,100 Canadian web shoppers, found that 68 percent of respondents have made purchases at online stores based in foreign countries, and the reasons their doing so are simple: cost and variety.
“In the eyes of the consumer, the downsides of buying from a U.S.-based retailer rather than a domestic Canadian retailer are diminishing. Canadian retailers should be shaking in their boots,” states the report, according to The Globe and Mail.
We take a look at Forrester’s results in this PYMNTS.com Data Point.
Canadians And Cross-Border Commerce: The Incentives
As cited above, over two-third of respondents said they’ve made purchases from eCommerce sites outside of Canada. In total, 72 percent said this was due to the lack of selection offered by domestic retailers, while 59 percent indicated that the higher savings they could reap elsewhere was their primary motivating factor.
“Canadian online shoppers will sacrifice any loyalty to Canada-domiciled retailers if they can find the same product cheaper online at an online marketplace or via a U.S. or international retailer,” the report stated.
Canadian Complaints: Where eCommerce Lags Behind
The biggest complaint from Canadian eCommerce shoppers centered around shipping prices, with 68 percent of those polled finding the cost of shipping to be too high. Sixty-five percent said they wanted the ability to return products in-store rather than engage in return shipping, and 56 percent cited a desire for price-matching guarantees. Just under half (48 percent) of respondents said they wanted an in-store pickup option.
To read more Canadian eCommerce stats, check out the Globe and Mail piece here.
