The United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union has experts, markets and business owners worried over the far-reaching consequences, especially in the global economy. In particular, its impact on cross-border ecommerce.
When it comes to ecommerce, the UK has been, without a doubt, the leader in Europe. It is both the largest ecommerce market and a huge success story the country has become very proud of. UK shoppers shop and spend more than other EU countries. According to Eurostat, 86 percent of internet users shopped online in 2017.
Now that the UK is leaving the EU, it brings uncertainty and concerns for online sellers and buyers. The biggest questions include, how will it affect the international sellers? Will sellers have to comply with new regulations? Will it affect the number of UK shoppers buying domestic, considering the taxes and customs that will apply?
Most importantly, will cross-border ecommerce slow down? Industry experts seem to think that it will.
According to the secretary general of the European e-commerce and omni-channel trade association (EMOTA), Maurits Bruggnik, “In case of a hard-Brexit, which seems to me the most likely scenario, we will see serious disruptions in cross-channel trade since all products will have to pass customs, product conformity procedures and other disruptors.
“This means long waiting periods for consumers waiting for their parcels to be delivered. With some product categories having return rates of up to 50%, the issue of delays will be even more important. This will quickly lead to a serious downturn in e-commerce.”
The second big question concerns the implications of Brexit on cross-border e-commerce in Europe. Specifically, how will it impact customs, delivery times, competitive prices and convenience?
“The drop of the Pound Stirling will not off-set the tremendous loss in shoppers convenience with long parcel delivery times. If a shopper is willing to wait long for a parcel delivery because of the price difference, the UK will always lose to China,” Maurits explains.
“Moreover, shoppers will also have to pay customs duties, which can for some product categories be very important. The number 1 e-commerce product category is clothing and that is an area where high customs duties still occur.”
Overall, the situation remains very uncertain. The key for business owners is to stay in tune with the preferences and demands of their customers, while also keeping up with changes in the markets. (For more industry updates and helpful reviews on merchant providers – like payvector – be sure to check out Best Payment Providers.) In the end, business owners will adapt and succeed – whatever the future brings.
Author Bio: Payment industry expert Taylor Cole is a passionate merchant account expert who understands the complicated world of accepting credit and debit cards at your business. His understanding of the industry and payvector has helped thousands of business owners save money and time.