September 11, 2023
A new study conducted by The European House – Ambrosetti in collaboration with Amazon indicates that the online channel is becoming a vital growth lever for Italian businesses. With €48 billion in transactions and €71 billion in turnover, e-commerce is a developing phenomenon in Italy and proves to be a strategic tool for development opportunities for businesses. The study called “The scenarios of today and tomorrow for competitive strategies” was presented at the Cernobbio Forum 2023. According to the research, Italian companies witnessed an average increase in turnover of 8.8%, marginality of 8.1%, and exports of 8.1% by selling online. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are the large beneficiaries of the e-commerce trend. SMEs reported an increase in turnover of over 9.3%, margin of over 64%, and over 3% in exports. The benefits of selling online are not limited to the digital channel as companies also experience an increase in brand awareness (approximately 70% of companies surveyed), their offer’s innovation based on multichannel experience, improved after-sales service (about 60% of companies), and expansion of their customer base domestically and internationally. If the optimistic e-commerce effects can be applied to all Italian companies, the economy could receive a boost of over €110 billion which is approximately 6% of GDP in 2022.
The previous studies conducted on Italian citizens and a statistical model based on ISTAT, Italian National Institute of Statistics focused on analyzing the impact of e-commerce on inflation. E-commerce facilitated access to lower prices and wider availability, range, and variety of items on offer amounting to around €40 billion in purchases over the last three years in Italy. The online prices were relatively stable, which helped control inflation that could be on average 5% higher over the last six years without the use of e-commerce. Amazon leads among leading brands, both physical and online, according to research by Ambrosetti. Amazon is ranked highest in terms of contributing to purchasing power, affordability, diversity, and breadth of offer.
Nearly 60% of the items sold on Amazon come from third-party sellers and SMEs, which aligns with Amazon’s commitment to put the customer first. In 2022, Amazon invested over €8 billion in logistics, services, tools, and training across the European continent. As a result, more than 21,000 Italian SMEs used the Amazon store in 2022, with more than half exporting their products, recording over €950 million in export sales, with an increase in the number of products sold to over 125 million products, about 20% more than the previous year. More than 850 SMEs exceeded €1 million in sales, and over 5,100 exceeded €100,000 in sales. The figures show that Amazon is committed to supporting entrepreneurs in the communities in which it operates, aiming to help them achieve annual export sales of €1.2 billion by 2025.
Despite the tremendous potential of e-commerce demonstrated by the figures above, e-commerce accounts for only 12% of Italy’s total retail revenue, and only 13% of Italian SMEs sell online, which is lower than the European average of 18% (Digital Economy and Society Index 2022). Amazon has created tools, including the Amazon Made in Italy showcase that brings over 5,500 Italian businesses’ excellence to Amazon’s online stores in eleven countries. Amazon also launched the “Accelera con Amazon,” a free training program that supports over 35,000 Italian startups and businesses and guides them in their digitization and internationalization path.
To enable e-commerce to play a decisive role in the Italian economy, legislative interventions are necessary, such as promoting awareness of e-commerce benefits, the development of the trade industry and a national plan aimed at improving the digital workers’ skills and knowledge. Strengthening the Digital Export’s offer and supporting trademark registration and protection of intellectual property are also recommended. Legislative and regulatory harmonization between Italy and the EU is also essential. Private and public sector collaboration is the most effective way to ensure the e-commerce trend positively impacts the Italian economy.
Source: AboutAmazonEU – News
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