Demand for online marketplaces growing 300pc each year, Stripe says
Spending on online marketplaces like Deliveroo, Booking.com and Airbnb is growing fourfold each year as more Brits buy and sell products through internet bazaars.
Internet and app shoppers are increasingly spending on digital marketplaces rather than on retailers directly, according to a report from payment provider Stripe. More than 70pc of Brits have turned to an online market like Amazon and ASOS while 20pc have used a food delivery app like Deliveroo.
While Silicon Valley is often seen as ahead of the UK with its on-demand economy, the number of shoppers using apps for food delivery was actually double that of the US.
The use of online marketplaces that bring together brands, shops or restaurants has exploded in recent years. Mobile and internet based shopping has seen the gradual decline of the high street, causing downturns in footfall and difficult market conditions.
The study also found that iPhone-addicted Brits were paying more with Apple Pay than their US counterparts. In the UK, Apple Pay had become the preferred method of payment for more than a quarter of people, while in the US only 14pc said Apple Pay was their first choice.
Stripe said that the growth rate of internet markets means there is still room for new players to emerge. While sites like Amazon are seen as the dominant ecommerce players, rival apps, such as the budget shopping app Wish.com, which uses a network of millions of sellers, have been growing at a startling rate. Wish.com, for example, was founded in 2011, but is already worth £6.7bn.
"First-movers might capture initial market share, but they don’t maintain their leads or pull away from rivals over time without many further investments," Stripe said.
Changing spending is particularly hitting food and restaurants. A report from UBS this week estimated that the global food delivery market was now worth $30bn, with "millenials" three times as likely to order through food delivery apps than their parents.
UBS analyst Chris Grundberg said: "We see a trend emerging of consumers ordering more and more food online from mid-tier and higher-tier restaurants. This can be clearly seen by the rise in popularity of apps like Uber Eats and Deliveroo."
