Flow recently conducted a research study surveying global consumers regarding their cross-border shopping expectations and behaviors. Sixty-seven percent of global consumers surveyed said they have made a purchase from a retailer outside their home country. This percentage rate is higher in certain locales such as Brazil (86%), Australia (85%), Canada (83%), and France (79%). While cross border e-commerce is on [...]
In Western countries, including the U.S., Mexico, Canada and the U.K., Christians are preparing their Easter celebrations for Sunday, April 21. This is a time when e-commerce retailers have been offering special promotions on last-minute items associated with this holiday: spring clothing, shoes, and of course, Easter-related gifts and candy. According to a recent NRF study, eight in ten adults in [...]
Brands and retailers know all too well how rapidly the state of e-commerce is evolving. For domestic online merchants, keeping up with technological innovation and increasingly higher consumer expectations is difficult. But for cross-border e-commerce retailers, meeting these challenges is even harder. There are numerous friction points along the customer journey that become barriers to making cross-border purchases. To gain more [...]
When cross-border e-commerce businesses ship products into different countries, an important consideration is including local duties and taxes into the product’s price. In terms of best practice, this reduces customer post-purchase friction. No two countries are alike in terms of legislation and regulations, so just how are these fees calculated? In 1988, the World Customs Organization created a single system to [...]
Let’s face the facts: international shipping is hard. Too many international retailers still don't know how to ship across borders, and don't even know where to begin with an international shipping strategy. There are several reasons for this. Managing last-mile carriers across various countries is difficult. There are carrier fees, country-specific taxes and duties and product restrictions to consider in each [...]
Brands are increasingly at the mercy of global tech giants like Amazon, Google and Facebook (Instagram) to access customers. The sales that occur on these large platforms tend to be less profitable compared to purchases made directly through a brand’s website. This is, in part, due to commissions and marketing costs that contribute to the cost of a sale and impact [...]
The French market presents considerable potential to cross border retailers. France is the fifth largest e-commerce market in the world and the seventh-largest economy in the world, with 89% of its population connected to the internet, and 67% identifying as “active online shoppers.” With a low return rate, these savvy digital consumers are open to cross border online purchases, so well-prepared [...]
Shoptalk brings together the entire retail ecosystem to discuss what the future of retail will be – and most importantly, how to prepare for it. Experts share the latest trends, technologies and business models, including recent changes in consumer expectations. This year’s Shoptalk event, held at the Venetian, Palazzo and Sands Expo Convention Center, was sold out, with 8,400 attendees and [...]
In case you couldn’t make it to ShopTalk last week, below is a summary of Flow CEO Rob Keve’s Tech Talk on Global Innovation and Expansion. International consumers purchased $2.86 trillion worth of goods via the internet in 2018, up from $2.43 trillion in 2017. But even as online shopping accelerates, too many retailers are still missing out on the potential [...]
A sneak preview of the TechTalk presentation Flow CEO Rob Keve will give at ShopTalk With global e-commerce growing at a faster rate than in the U.S, it’s no wonder that domestic brands and retailers look to international expansion as a way to increase revenue and acquire new customers. But this level of opportunity for brands and retailers can’t be fully [...]
