Swedish e-commerce stands on its own feet

There is currently no dominant digital marketplace in Sweden. Rather, Swedish e-merchants see such marketplaces as one of several possible sales channels and the digital marketplaces are usually behind no more than 20 percent of the Swedish e-merchants’ turnover. This is revealed by the survey on e-commerce with physical goods performed by the Swedish Competition Authority.

The year 2020 was characterised by unusually high growth in e-commerce, with three to four years’ growth occurring in a single year. During 2020, around 3,500 new e-commerce shops were established, which was around 1,500 more new shops than in 2019.

The fact that consumers nowadays have the possibility to easily check prices online exerts price pressures on both e-commerce and physical shops. Around 60 percent of the e-merchants in the Swedish Competition Authority’s survey state that the competitive pressure on physical shops is high or very high.

‘There are several signs that the competition within Swedish e-commerce is generally sound, but digital development is fast-paced and the circumstances can change quickly. Right now, there is an ongoing international debate regarding digital markets and some countries are implementing new regulations in this area. There is every reason to closely observe the development of the digital markets in Sweden too,’ says the director-general of the Swedish Competition Authority, Rikard Jermsten.

The importance of digital advertising has increased. At the same time, international studies reveal that e-merchants are limited in their possibilities to advertise online.

‘If the possibilities of digital visibility are limited for undertakings, this may affect competition. Thus, there is reason to more closely investigate the development of digital advertising markets,’ says Rikard Jermsten.

For further information, please contact:

Marie Strömberg Lindvall, press contact, +46 (0)76 542 15 92, marie.stromberglindvall@kkv.se
Ann-Britt Bern, project manager, +46 (0)8 700 15 39, ann.britt.bern@kkv.se

Read the report: Competition and growth in e-commerce (in Swedish)

The report will be supplemented with an English summary shortly.