Half of Kiwis now shop online
The number of Kiwis buying products over the internet has grown 30% over the last four years. In the year to June 2015,
1.8 million New Zealanders 14+ (49.3%) bought at least one product over the internet in the last four weeks, up from
just under 1.4 million (39.5%) in 2011, Roy Morgan Research shows.
9.0% of Kiwis now buy travel products such as tickets or accommodation online in an average four-week period, making it
the most common internet purchase ahead of women’s clothing (7.9%), tickets to shows, movies or events (6.1%) and fast
food/delivered meals (6.1%).
Other popular online purchases include Books (5.0%) and eBooks (4.1%), music downloads (4.7%), and men’s clothing
(4.0%)—with around half the number of online buyers as womenswear.
Top 20 products Kiwis buy online
Source: Roy Morgan Single Source New Zealand, July 2014 - June 2015, sample n = 5983 New Zealanders 14+
During the month, around 100,000 Kiwis click to buy one or more items from a range of categories including shoes, video
games and consoles, cosmetics and skincare, health products like vitamins and supplements, toys, crafts, sports
equipment, computer accessories and software, and children’s clothing. Rounding out our top 20 online purchases are
small electrical goods (2.5%), underwear, socks and hosiery (2.2%) and, with only around 1 in 50 online buyers in an
average four weeks, supermarket shopping (2.1%).
John La Rosa, General Manager Client Services - ANZ Roy Morgan Research, says:
“It’s clear that many of the most common online sales are for non-physical items like tickets, bookings, home delivery,
and downloads—that is, products with no shipping or that don’t need to be tried on or tested in a bricks-and-mortar
store. For many, the internet is now the default channel for buying a travel or movie ticket, booking a hotel room, or
ordering a pizza.
“Other commonly purchased items such as clothes, books and cosmetics are items that we know are identical whether bought
online or in a store, so it may come down to price and convenience.
“But other products ranging from small electrical goods, sports equipment and homewares to computers, jewellery and
hardware, are also gaining in the online space. It’s important that traditional retailers stop viewing online as a
threat, and instead as an opportunity to reach and appeal to customers in different ways. Today’s consumers aren’t
thinking in terms of online or offline—to them, it’s all just shopping. Retailers therefore need an ‘omni-channel’ view
of their offerings, competition, pricing, service and advertising.
“Around two-thirds of internet shoppers agree they only buy from online retailers they know—whether that’s trustworthy
online-only outlets or the websites of bricks-and-mortar shops. Around 1 in 5 say they only buy from New Zealand online
stores.
“Also, the internet isn’t just a sales channel; it’s often the way we do a bit of pre-purchase planning via computer,
mobile or tablet instead of visiting stores. Almost half of Kiwis agree they research products or services online before
buying in-store, and almost 1 in 3 did product research online within the last four weeks.”
ENDS