Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- The market
- Much larger than the B2C e-commerce sector
- Renewed strong growth
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- Figure 1: The B2B e-commerce market, 2014-18
- Segmentation by route
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- Figure 2: Segmentation of B2B e-commerce sales, 2014-18
- Segmentation by sector
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- Figure 3: Segmentation of e-commerce sales, by sector, 2018
- Major room for growth
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- Figure 4: Proportion of companies making e-commerce sales, by channel, 2009-17
- Strong prospects for growth
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- Figure 5: Forecast B2B e-commerce market, 2019-23
- Companies and brands
- Huge fragmentation
- SMEs under-utilising website sales
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- Figure 6: Proportion of companies making website sales by size of company, 2017
- EDI is also strongly biased towards larger companies
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- Figure 7: Proportion of companies making EDI sales by size of company, 2017
- What we think
Issues and Insights
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- E-commerce is more than just having a website
- The facts
- The implications
- E-commerce still underdeveloped, particularly by SMEs
- The facts
- The implications
- Paid internet advertising – A key component
- The facts
- The implications
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- Figure 8: Propensity of companies to use internet advertising, by size of company, 2017 (% of companies by number of employees)
The Market – What You Need to Know
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- B2B digital strategy playing catch up
- More companies buy on the internet than sell
- The UK – A receptive audience
Market Size
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- E-commerce continuing to grow strongly
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- Figure 9: Total growth of e-commerce sales, 2014-18
- EDI back in growth and website sales are dynamic
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- Figure 10: E-commerce sales, 2014-18, by type
- The B2B activity
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- Figure 11: B2B e-commerce sales, 2014-18, by type
Market Segmentation
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- B2B much larger than B2C
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- Figure 12: Segmentation of the e-commerce market, by end user type, 2018 (£ billion)
- EDI almost double website sales in B2B
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- Figure 13: Segmentation of the B2B e-commerce market, 2018, by channel (£ billion)
- E-commerce used by most business sectors
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- Figure 14: Segmentation of e-commerce sales, by sector, 2018
- Figure 15: Proportion of companies making e-commerce sales, by sector, 2017
Segmentation: Manufacturing
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- EDI the favoured e-commerce route
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- Figure 16: E-commerce sales by the manufacturing sector, 2014-18, by type
- B2B dominates e-commerce activity
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- Figure 17: Segmentation of manufacturing website sales, by type of customer, 2014-17
- E-commerce still confined to few companies
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- Figure 18: Proportion of manufacturing companies involved in e-commerce, 2017
Segmentation: Utilities
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- A website-led sector
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- Figure 19: E-commerce sales by the utilities sector, 2014-18, by type
- A major B2C market
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- Figure 20: Segmentation of utilities website sales, by type of customer, 2014-17
Segmentation: Construction
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- A low e-commerce use sector
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- Figure 21: E-commerce sales by the construction sector, 2014-18, by type
- B2C of growing importance
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- Figure 22: Segmentation of construction website sales, by type of customer, 2014-17
- Purchasing far more common that selling
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- Figure 23: Proportion of construction companies involved in e-commerce, 2017
Segmentation: Wholesale
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- The largest e-commerce market
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- Figure 24: E-commerce sales by the wholesale sector, 2014-18, by type
- Website B2B sales progress strongly
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- Figure 25: Segmentation of wholesale website sales, by type of customer, 2014-17
- Both e-commerce purchasing and selling are common
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- Figure 26: Proportion of wholesale companies involved in e-commerce, 2017
Segmentation: Retail
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- Websites dominate sales
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- Figure 27: E-commerce sales by the retail sector, 2014-18, by type
- A consumer dominated market
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- Figure 28: Segmentation of retail website sales, by type of customer, 2014-17
- Room for much more growth
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- Figure 29: Proportion of retail companies involved in e-commerce, 2017
Segmentation: Transport and Storage
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- The third largest industry sector
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- Figure 30: E-commerce sales by the transport and storage sector, 2014-18, by type
- B2B sales development
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- Figure 31: Segmentation of transport and storage website sales, by type of customer, 2014-17
Segmentation: Accommodation and Food Service
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- Website sales record strong growth
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- Figure 32: E-commerce sales by the accommodation and food service sector, 2014-18, by type
- More than a third of the market is B2B
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- Figure 33: Segmentation of accommodation and food service website sales, by type of customer, 2014-17
- Purchasing more common than selling
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- Figure 34: Proportion of accommodation and food service companies involved in e-commerce, 2017
Segmentation: Information and Communications
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- Still demonstrating growth
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- Figure 35: E-commerce sales by information and communication sector, 2014-18, by type
- A quarter of website sales are B2B
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- Figure 36: Segmentation of information and communications website sales, by type of customer, 2014-17
- Major penetration for purchases
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- Figure 37: Proportion of information and communication companies involved in e-commerce, 2017
Segmentation: Other Services
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- Figure 38: E-commerce sales by other services sector, 2014-18, by type
- B2C continues to lead website sales
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- Figure 39: Segmentation of other services website sales, by type of customer, 2014-17
- Purchasing more common than selling
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- Figure 40: Proportion of other services companies involved in e-commerce, 2017
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Market Forecast
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- Strong overall growth
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- Figure 41: Forecast total e-commerce market, 2019-23
- Blurred boundaries
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- Figure 42: Forecast comparison of the B2C and B2B e-commerce market, 2019-23
- B2B market segmentation
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- Figure 43: Forecast segmentation of the B2B e-commerce market, 2019-23
The Impact of the Economy
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- GDP
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- Figure 44: GDP overall quarterly development, Q1 2015-Q3 2018
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- Figure 45: GDP quarterly development, by sector, 2004-18
- Figure 46: Forecast GDP development, 2018-23
Market Trends
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- Introduction
- Artificial intelligence (AI) – An important progression
- Consistent omni-channel strategies
- Richer content
- The mobile trend
- Voice-assisted commerce
- Chatbots
- Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR)
Market Drivers
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- Internet usage
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- Figure 47: Worldwide internet usage, by region, 2000-18 (million)
- Figure 48: Proportion of UK businesses with internet access, by size of company, 2017
- Website use by companies
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- Figure 49: Proportion of UK businesses with websites, by size of business, 2017
Companies and Brands – What You Need to Know
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- The power of platforms
- How the B2C market impacts the B2B sector
Industry Structure
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- A very fragmented sector
- Strong growth in companies
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- Figure 50: Development of the dedicated retail sales via mail order or internet, 2014-18
- Further room for growth
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- Figure 51: Proportion of companies making e-commerce sales, by channel, 2009-17
- SMEs have further opportunities to build website sales
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- Figure 52: Proportion of companies making website sales by size of company, 2017
- EDI is strongly biased towards larger companies
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- Figure 53: Proportion of companies making EDI sales by size of company, 2017
- Major mismatch between buyers and sellers
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- Figure 54: Comparison of companies active in e-commerce selling and purchasing, by size of company, 2017
Competitive Strategies
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- The ‘Big 2’ have different international growth strategies
- Others are also targeting global positions
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- Figure 55: Geographic breakdown of Electrocomponents turnover (%)
- Complementing outlets or specialising in e-commerce?
- Changing attitudes to catalogues
- Different approaches to stockholding
Company Profiles
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- Alibaba Group Holdings
- Activity
- Performance
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- Figure 56: Turnover summary of Alibaba Group Holdings, 2014-18
- Strategy
- Amazon
- Activity
- Performance
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- Figure 57: Financial summary of Amazon, 2013-17 ($ million)
- Strategy
- Electrocomponents
- Activity
- Performance
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- Figure 58: Financial summary of Electrocomponents, 2014-18 (£ million)
- Strategy
- Office Depot
- Activity
- Performance
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- Figure 59: Financial analysis of Office Depot International (UK), 2013-17 (£ million)
- Strategy
- Orbital Fasteners
- Activity
- Performance
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- Figure 60: Financial summary of Orbital Fasteners, 2013-17 (£ million)
- Strategy
- Screwfix Direct
- Activity
- Performance
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- Figure 61: Financial summary of Screwfix Direct, 2014-18 (£ million)
- Strategy
Appendix – Data Sources, Abbreviations and Supporting Information
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- Abbreviations
- Methodology
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