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Big ticket items snapped up online

Nicola Mawson
By Nicola Mawson, Contributor.
Johannesburg, 24 Mar 2010

Online shopping is expected to gather momentum as more South Africans log onto the Internet.

A survey released yesterday by global credit card company MasterCard shows 77% of South Africans, who have Internet access, shop online. The figure is slightly down from last year's research, by 3%.

Anthony West, MasterCard senior VP and GM of Africa, says the trend towards online shopping is growing. Although this year's figure is slightly down on last year, the company recorded growth in 2009, compared with 2008.

West says the decline in shoppers this year can be attributed to concerns over security, a perception that users need a credit card to shop online, and consumers wanting to “touch and feel” what they buy. However, he says, there is a growing trend towards buying big ticket items, such as furniture, online.

More comfortable

MasterCard expects online shoppers to grow in line with the expected growth of Internet users. West says consumers are attracted by the minimum hassle of shopping online when compared to the queues at normal shops, as well as the lower prices that can be found on the Web.

World Wide Worx recently said the number of South Africans with access to the Internet had grown 15%, to 5.3 million users, in 2009, and it expects a similar growth rate for 2010. Almost 11 million South Africans are expected to be online by 2015.

“The latest MasterCard survey revealed that 83% of South African online shoppers are satisfied with their overall online shopping experience and that 72% of active online shoppers intend to make an online purchase in the next six months,” says West.

“As online shoppers become more savvy and are increasingly satisfied with their online shopping experience, they are purchasing not just lifestyle items, such as airline tickets, online games and music downloads, but also basic necessities, including home appliances and groceries,” he notes.

This is the third survey on online shopping habits conducted by MasterCard. It covered 8 000 respondents, across 14 markets: Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, SA, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and United Arab Emirates. The inaugural survey was conducted in December 2007.

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