The Dutch the biggest online buyers of fashion in Europe

The Dutch buy many more shoes, clothes and bags online than other Europeans. No less than 77% of the Dutch buys fashion online, while across Europe this is 59%. Last year the percentage for the Dutch was as high as 71%, as DPD’s survey shows. This survey also shows that almost half of the Dutch population like to order their food and drink online, while at European level this is 34%.

These are just a few results from DPD’s e-shopper barometer 2022: a survey that DPD carries out every year among 24,000 Europeans aged between 18 and 70 years in 22 countries, including 1,000 in the Netherlands. The survey looks at the latest trends in online shopping and delivery preferences in Europe.

Leaders in returns
Apart from the fact that the Dutch buy more fashion, food and drink online compared to the rest of Europe, we are also leaders in returns. Almost a quarter (23%) of the Dutch population returned their latest purchases, while at European level this is 14%. Of this 23%, more than half found the return process to be easy and convenient.

Environmentally aware

The survey by DPD shows that, compared to the rest of Europe, the Dutch feel that the environment and sustainability are less important factors when shopping online. Although almost half of the population in the Netherlands would sooner choose a website that offers sustainable transport options, across Europe this is 64%. In addition, 59% of the Dutch feel that brands and companies must now be more environmentally aware, compared to 67% in Europe.

Triggers for online shopping
Just as in 2021, free delivery is the biggest trigger for online shopping (40%). The free return of online purchases is also an important reason why respondents choose for the online shopping variant (28%).

Online shoppers have higher expectations than ever
The survey has shown that online shoppers have high expectations of the delivery process: they want fast, reliable delivery, want to be able to select an accurate delivery moment and kept informed of the exact time slot, and feel that real-time tracking adds value in the delivery process. In the top 10 of important criteria for online shopping, free delivery is way out in front, followed by free returns.

Streamlining processes
Erik Uljee, CEO of DPD: “The e-shopper barometer is a very useful survey we use to identify European trends among online shopper, based on facts and figures. We are of course coming out of an exceptionally busy period, followed by a period of uncertainties around the world, among them Covid-19, Brexit, war and the energy crisis. As a result, we have had to grow very fast in a short space of time and are going all out to continue to meet expectations. We have seen this across the entire sector. We are proud that we have managed to do so in such a short space of times, but now it’s time to streamline our processes even more so we can continue to meet all expectations. Internationally, because that’s where our focus lies. If DPD’s international processes run smoothly, it’s immediately felt in the Netherlands. And that’s what we’re very busy working on right now.”