French e-commerce sales increased by 14.6% between 2015 and 2016, reaching €72 billion. More than 1 billion online purchases were made in France, number that responds to 33 transactions per second.
The Christmas period in 2016
The excellent performance in 2016 can be explained in large part by the very positive balance of sales at the end of the year. In November and December, the sector grew by 15% to bring total online Christmas sales to €14 billion, which represent 20% of the turnover for the year. 73% of e-buyers bought gifts on the Internet during that period, 7 points more than the year before.
The frequency of on-line purchases of cyber-buyers continuing to increase (+ 21% in one year), they spend an average of €2.000 per year on the Internet, on the occasion of 28 purchases. In 2010, this amount was only € 1,084. On the other hand, the average basket continues to decline: between 2015 and 2016, it rose from €75 to €70. In particular, the number of active merchant sites has increased by 12% in one year to currently over 200,000.
The new numbers show that the online retail industry in France continued its development last year. This good performance can be explained by a very positive result of the end-of-year sales. During the holiday season, online sales in France increased by 15% compared to the same period one year before. The months of November and December represented 20% of the turnover of 2016.
In 2017, French e-commerce will be about to reach €80 billion in sales, with growth exceeding 11%. The two main levers according to the federation: the expansion of the customer base and the increase in the frequency of purchases.
