Dubai: A survey of 50 international leading retailers shows they expect their online sales to double by 2014 to reach 10 percent, according to a new study by CBRE.
The majority of retailers, 77 per cent, said they aim to enhance their sales channels by offering mobile apps or smart phone enabled websites over the next two years, according to a report titled “The role of real estate in the multichannel world” released by property services firm CBRE yesterday.
The survey aimed to identify retailers’ current strategies for multichannel retailing — sales over various channels including in-store, online and mobile apps — and how that could develop by 2014. The study was commissioned in June and surveys 50 top retailers with a combined network of over 32,000 stores globally. Online retailing is set to play a significantly greater role than at present in emerging markets, including the Middle East, Central and Eastern Europe and Asia Pacific, according to a report titled “The role of real estate in the multichannel world” released by property services firm CBRE yesterday.
However, online retailing is still in its early stages in the Middle East where consumers are still wrapped around an “established mall culture” that has become a central point for young people to socialise, said Mat Green, head of research and consultancy at CBRE Middle East.
“To be successful, online retailers will have to become more creative in their offer in order to entice shoppers away from organised formats,” he said.
Most people in the region shop in physical stores, especially for high fashion products where consumers are hesitant to fully embrace multichannel shopping, he added.
“Whilst some luxury goods items may be struggling to change consumer habits, there has been notable growth in participation levels for web-based auction sites, group discount sites and flight and hotel bookings engines,” he said.
About 70 per cent of retailers see themselves as “bricks and mortar” retailers but in two years’ time, 63 per cent will have converted into fully integrated multichannel businesses, the report showed.
“Multichannel will complement not compete with ‘bricks and mortar’ retailing over the next two years and will drive increased traffic to stores say international retailers,” the report stated.
Indeed, 60 per cent of retailers say they will need more shop space across their total network as a result of their multichannel strategy in two years’ time.
