”The Canadian dollar’s rise against the US dollar has led to a surge in Canadian cross-border online shopping,” says Jeffrey Grau, eMarketer Senior Analyst and author of the new report, Canada B2C E-Commerce: The Barriers Melt. “It is providing a big boost to home-grown Canadian e-commerce, too.”
Even before the currency shift, there was evidence of Canadian B2C e-commerce taking off. In April 2007, Statistics Canada reported that online retail sales in Canada grew by a healthy 70% in 2006.
”eMarketer estimates that this year Canadians will spend C$15.7 billion (US$14.7 billion) online on products and services such as online travel reservations and event tickets,” says Mr. Grau. “We also include purchases made with foreign Web retailers, the majority of which are on US sites.”
By 2011, online spending will more than double, reaching C$37.2 billion (U$30.2 billion).
”Of course, Canadian B2C e-commerce still has plenty of room to grow,” says Mr. Grau.
Even taking into account that Canada has one-ninth the population of the US, it is still a disproportionately small e-commerce market. Only 78% of Canadian online users are online shoppers, compared to nearly 85% of US users who shop online.
”In addition, the average Canadian online buyer will spend less than a US online buyer this year,” says Mr. Grau.
The major shift in the size of the Canadian B2C market will come as more Canadian retailers move online.
”Even now, only about 15% of retailers in Canada sell online,” says Mr. Grau. “But those that are taking the plunge say an online presence is critical to acquiring new customers.”
