Study: Canadian retailers way behind in buy online, pickup in-store

10/25/2017
Canadian retailers have a long road ahead when it comes to delivering compelling omnichannel capabilities.

Still relatively new to the omnichannel retail game, Canadian retailers lag far behind counterparts in other countries, especially in the increasingly critical area of buy online, pickup in-store (BOPIS), or click-and-collect capabilities, according to the “Omni-1000 Canada Research Study,” from OrderDynamics. The report analyzed more than 200 retailers in the U.K., and more than 1,000 retailers worldwide.

Only 23% of Canadian retailers offer the service. And half of the retailers that do offer the service advertise it on their homepage – a huge missed opportunity, according to the study.

Overall, 82% of Canadian retailers have standard e-commerce capabilities, such as the ability for shoppers to create a virtual shopping basket and purchase goods online. While 56% of companies provide basic inventory visibility to online consumers, only 7.3% offer a detailed level of inventory visibility.

Meanwhile, 64.1% allow shoppers to buy online, return in-store (BORIS), and 78% offer free shipping. While the Canadian retail market excels in aspects such as returns and e-commerce capabilities, retailers have room to improve in all aspects of omnichannel, and should prioritize this in order to catch-up to other global retailers.

“Canada, as such a diverse retail market, has work to do in order to meet changing customer demands,” said Nick McLean, CEO, OrderDynamics. “Omnichannel practices such as click-and-collect and buy online, return in-store are crucial to maintaining customer satisfaction and market demands. The sooner Canadian retailers meet these needs, the sooner they can prosper.”
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