Online luxury retail sales skyrocketed 50 per cent over the first half of 2021 as it became the fastest growing sector thanks to a “growing digitally native middle class”.
Luxury ecommerce sales across international markets are driving the post-pandemic economic recovery, according to new data from eshopworld (EWS).
In a survey of nearly 15,000 consumers across 14 countries, EWS found that growing demand from millennial and Gen Z shoppers is set to drive online luxury sales up 30 per cent this year, up from 22 per cent last year.
By market, China, UAE, South Korea and India have the most demand for overseas luxury goods, with a whopping 70 per cent of millennials, Gen Z and ‘baby boomers’ in China and South Korea shopping for luxury goods online.
READ MORE: Digital wallets to make up $11bn of online spending by 2026
Furthermore, while 42 per cent of shoppers say they still want to shop for luxury items in store, 43 per cent said they are happy to continue shopping online.
“The quality, craftsmanship and prestige of luxury products is in increasing demand from a growing digitally native middle class, living outside the traditional luxury markets, who are both brand and status hungry,” ESW’s chief commercial officer Martim Avillez Oliveira said.
“The luxury brands that continue to adapt and embrace omnichannel strategies that meld the expectations of the modern consumer with the traditional tenets of the luxury experience, from super-premium customer service, including tracked, personalised delivery, free returns, luxury packaging and premium courier services, to immersive online experiences, are the brands that will thrive as they bridge the perceived divide between online and in-store and win the loyalty of the next generation of luxury shoppers.”
