They are the Chinese e-commerce to have transformed the structure of e-commerce in Italy. This is demonstrated by the data that emerged from Delivery index 2024 developed by Netcomm with Italian postwhich will be presented on May 8 and 9 at the new edition of the Netcomm Forum: despite a significant growth in the penetration of e-commerce among Italian consumers, its economic value does not increase. Simplifying: Italians buy more online, but average spending decreases. This happens precisely due to the presence of sites like Shein e Temu among the platforms preferred by Italians, perhaps precisely because of the rock-bottom prices. Another novelty: after years of talking about the importance and growth ofomnichannel – the integrated shopping experience across all channels, including in-store, mobile and online – today we do not find it among the priorities of the sector: “Not because it isn’t, but because in Italy small chains struggle to do channel integration (for economic reasons, ed.) – he comments Roberto Lisciapresident of Netcomm Forum – and the big players have already invested in the sector.”
The point aboute-commerce in Italy will emerge from the many researches that will be presented during the two-day event in Milan, now in its nineteenth edition, entitled this year “The intelligence commerce. Composable & Fluid, the continuous re-configuration of retail and supply chains”. Among these studies returns the Netcomm NetRetail 2024, the observatory that has analysed, every year since 2014, the role of digital in Italians’ purchases. The Il research will also be presented Venture capital nel digital retail & services, which offers an analysis of the world of digital services in the Italian and European venture capital ecosystem in terms of amount invested, number of rounds, reasons for the investment.
Another theme at the center of the new edition will be‘artificial intelligence: “We will finally have the opportunity to delve deeper into and understand its role and that of the most advanced technologies as levers to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of companies’ business models – adds Liscia – In addition to the topic of AI, we will delve into topics as automation, the blockchain, il social commerce and how these innovations can be implemented for the benefit of companies. In the world of e-commerce, competition is increasingly based not only on the breadth of the offer and prices, but also on the quality of the customer experience and on values that the brand is able to communicate to the consumer. New technologies, metaverse, virtual and augmented realitythey can definitely be powerful user engagement models.”
Today we talk about “Extended Retail” to describe the phenomenon in which the retail sector extends to all those moments in which a connection is created with brands, companies and products. In a time of growing competition, galloping inflation and users who are increasingly attentive to savings, establishing a relationship with the consumer is now a real objective of brands and companies. An opportunity that has emerged in e-commerce concerns the predominant role of social media in defining the relationship between consumers and companies on a global level: “Social media – explains Liscia – have become not only information but also sales platforms, while marketplaces are losing ground. This dynamic contributes to the growth of the Direct to Consumer phenomenon , which is establishing itself both globally and in Italy, allowing producers to establish a direct connection with their customers. This trend has opened new frontiers in marketing media, such as Advanced TV/Connected TV, paid social, retail media, and has pushed into new environments such as gaming, the metaverse and eSports, reflecting the interests and expectations of Generation Z.”
In this context, it fits the Extended Retail represented by the metaversewhich offers an immersive digital dimension, integrating virtual reality, blockchain, NFT and artificial intelligence. The future will in fact be focused on AI, which represents the first destination for investments in the e-commerce sector. Furthermore, virtual and augmented reality are becoming important for conveying emotions and involving consumers in increasingly realistic experiences.
But to grow, especially in Italy, the sector needs economic support from investors: “Unfortunately – concludes the president of Netcomm – the lack of Italian business aptitude to invest in digital and the lack of institutional investors focusing on the sector remain a brake on the growth of Italian e-commerce”. It is no coincidence that in the ranking of the e-commerce sites most used by Italians, to find the first local site you have to get to seventh place (Esselunga). Homegrown e-commerce platforms in the pharma sector also stand out in the top ten, a new growing trend in Italy and Europe, in terms of the strongest product sectors in online commerce.