get ready for the tsunami There is growing awareness of the increasing impact of online shopping on bricks and mortar retailing. There is very good reason for that awareness, given the rapid growth of online shopping anticipated in Australia over the next few years. Research suggests that approximately 7.5% of retail spending in Australia during […]

get ready for the tsunami There is growing awareness of the increasing impact of online shopping on bricks and mortar retailing. There is very good reason for that awareness, given the rapid growth of online shopping anticipated in Australia over the next few years. Research suggests that approximately 7.5% of retail spending in Australia during 2016 was online. More recent research suggests that this will increase to 21% by 2018. Some experts, including Jack Ma of Alibaba fame, suggest it will reach 50% by 2025. My prediction is that all of these estimates are conservative. Depending on how you define ‘retail’ I estimate that, with the entry of Amazon into the Australian market, the abovementioned estimates are at the lower end of the scale. This prediction is fuelled by the appalling standard of service offered by most retailers in Australia. Current bricks and mortar retailers need to get ready for…