E-commerce has become an integral part of the “new normal” since the coronavirus pandemic began this year, and the behemoth that is online shopping is only expected to grow by the trillions throughout the 2020s, the inaugural e-commerce forecast from GroupM predicts.
With many brick-and-mortar retailers beefing up their online presence due to COVID-19 operating restrictions, coupled with most consumer packaged goods manufacturers experiencing a shift in how their products are purchased, global e-commerce enjoyed a record-breaking year.
In the second quarter of 2020 alone, retail sales via e-commerce channels recorded a 277% explosion in growth, GroupM’s proprietary data found—and that popularity is not expected to wane in the future, even as the pandemic is brought under control.
The media investment company further estimates that global retail e-commerce, excluding food and delivery services, will work out to $3.9 trillion in 2020, or 17% of equivalent global retail sales—more than double its annual sales activity in 2016.