Surge in small business ecommerce, study shows

Date: 26th January 2009

The number of small retailers using ecommerce has now reached more than a third, according to a new investigation.

Statistics published by the multi-channel systems specialist Actinic today (January 26th) show that 35 per cent of smaller retail businesses have ecommerce websites, up from 11 per cent three years ago.

What's more, 22 per cent of those without an ecommerce site have plans to launch one in the near future, the survey revealed.

Chief executive of Actinic, Chris Barling, commented: "Times are tough for retailers so I'm sure that the take up of ecommerce will be significant in 2009 as it is the only channel where profits and growth are still on the up."

He added that, despite this, only a minority of companies were operating across multiple platforms, such as the high street, telephone, post and online.

Smaller firms should also remember the upcoming deadline for self-assessment tax returns, as all submissions are due online to HM Revenue and Customs by January 31st.