According to a study by JP Morgan, COVID-19 has truly revolutionised the typical consumer’s spending habits and forced a paradigm shift amongst the masses in the USA. In fact, the study showed that the pandemic has pushed more shoppers online, with consumers looking to the web for everything from hand sanitisers and skincare products to groceries.
Many international business-to-consumer (B2C) companies are already leveraging e-commerce trends to reap profits. One of these ways is the use of data to create personalised and tailored shopping experiences in order to mimic the in-store shopping vibe. The same data is also used to recommend e-commerce products that make the best sales online on these very platforms. With these information, B2C companies in Malaysia can better prepare their inventory to target cross-border markets, like the USA, by looking into the e-commerce products that are popular globally.
1. Digital products
According to global data by Statista, there are a total of 4.66 billion active internet users worldwide - 59.5% of the global population. Of this total, 92.6% (4.32 billion) accessed the internet via mobile devices. With this, naturally comes the increase in the trend of purchasing and using digital products.Some examples of these are online courses, ebooks, web elements and graphic art bundles.
The benefits of selling digital products are plain to see. Due to the internet being an international platform, the theoretical market share is almost infinite. There are also significantly lower overhead costs, as running a digital product e-commerce store does not require the mandatory upkeep that physical stores possess, such as physical inventory, rent, and utility costs. Put them all together and you’ll know the value that can be obtained from the demand and profitability of digital products.
2. Fashion and apparel
Fashion and apparels are also another category of popular items to sell online for B2C companies in 2022. According to Statista, In 2021, online fashion sales accounted for 23.51% of total retail e-commerce sales in the United States experts predict that online sales of fashion and apparel are set to quintuple by 2025.
Products worth looking into include footwear and modest wear, as both markets are predicted to grow exponentially in the coming years. By 2027, the footwear market is also expected to grow to US$530.3 billion. It was estimated to be worth US$365.6 billion in 2020. As for the modest wear market, the global expenditure was estimated at US$283 billion in 2018, reporting an increase of US$260 billion within a year, according to Salaam Gateway, signifying potential growth in subsequent years. These open opportunities for many retailers and entrepreneurs.
3. Health supplements
With the pandemic pushing consumers to be more health conscious, the demand for health supplements on e-commerce sites have started to grow steadily in recent years. According to the research study by Global News Wire, the global Dietary Supplements Market was estimated at US$167.8 billion in 2019 and is expected to reach US$306.8 billion by 2026, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9% from 2019 to 2027.
Health supplements include sports foods and medicinal supplements, and are taken to supplement one’s diet. In 2019, the largest portion of the global dietary supplement market was an additional supplement. This was due to the tremendous demand for more drugs to treat and prevent various diseases after the pandemic, taken simultaneously. The sports nutrition segment is also predicted to show significant growth in the near future with the maturation of the sports industry worldwide.
Will e-commerce continue to grow in 2022?
The future of e-commerce in Malaysia is expected to grow exponentially, amidst the trend of digitalisation. Experts argue that there is huge room for further expansion as increasing consumer spending, burgeoning numbers of internet users and acceptance of mobile payment become mainstays in the 21st century. Start dipping your toes in the e-commerce world by setting up an online store now.