Hey, Big Spenders. Record Spending in Austrian E-Commerce in 2017.

What a Year. What Made 2017 a Record Year for E-Commerce.

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We still remember it fondly — a true milestone for us: 2017.On June 20, 2017, the Austrian Trade Association and the “Mail Order & E-Commerce” platform, together with SME Research Austria, presented the E-Commerce Study Austria 2017 – Consumer Behavior in Distance Selling.‍

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Shop Til’ You Drop.

‍As part of the study, 2,000 Austrians aged 15 and over were surveyed between May 2016 and April 2017 about their distance-selling habits. That includes not just online shopping, but also traditional mail-order and teleshopping.The result? An all-time high in spending, major shifts in consumer behavior across all age groups — and a continuing trend toward mobile commerce.

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The Year of Records. 2017.

Distance selling was booming — and smartphone-driven sales skyrocketed. Austrian consumers spent a record-breaking €7.6 billion in distance selling. Of that, €6.8 billion (89%) came from e-commerce alone. Mobile commerce (shopping via smartphone) contributed €530 million — up 25% — marking a sixfold increase between 2012 and 2017.

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If No One Answers the Phone...

...it’s probably because there were already more convenient ways to shop!
Orders placed by phone or mail were steadily declining. In a five-year comparison, the number of online shoppers in Austria increased by 24%, while mail-order buyers dropped by 37%. Even among the 60+ generation, online shopping had overtaken traditional phone or post orders.

Almost all product categories saw an increase in spending in 2017 — with the exception of furniture and home furnishings. The biggest spending category remained clothing and textiles at €1.7 billion, followed by electrical appliances at €1.1 billion.

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Foreign Shops Continue to Dominate Turnover.

Even though the number of total buyers stayed flat, the spending per buyer hit a record €1,550 per year. Roughly 50% of Austrian e-commerce was done through foreign shops. And 13% of Austrian e-commerce buyers said they only shop internationally. This means e-commerce growth was accompanied by a rising outflow of purchasing power. Many foreign online retailers used Austrian domain names — so shoppers often believed they were buying local, while actually purchasing from companies headquartered abroad. In contrast, the number of globally competitive online shops based in Austria remained relatively low.

Our Conclusion Back Then: There’s Much More Potential.
And recent years have proven us right. More and more people are choosing e-commerce — simply because it makes sense. Shopping from home is easier and more convenient. And with concepts like Click & Collect and optimized returns management gaining traction, the experience continues to improve. Because yes — even online, you can create a shopping experience that’s simply wow.

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