As October brings GST on online purchases from international websites, it seems that many New Zealanders aren't too fussed about it.
A recent Canstar Blue online shopping consumer poll found that only 29% of the 1659 respondents will be put off buying things from international websites. Furthermore, 83% have used an overseas site for online shopping in the last 12 months and 67% have used an online 'department store' in the last 12 months.
Convenience is the name of the game. 31% of respondents say they do around half of their shopping online.
70% say online shopping is convenient, 56% is easy to find what they're looking for, and 46% say price appeals to them.
Back in 2017, the New Zealand Connected Consumers Report found that two thirds of New Zealanders had shopped online – a massive jump from just one third in 2006.
Despite the allure of global shopping at their fingertips, Kiwis enjoy from local retailers.
"From the six metrics we measured, speed of delivery was the key driver of overall satisfaction with online shopping sites. "That puts New Zealand-based online retailers at a considerable advantage," says Canstar New Zealand general manager Jose George.
"While overseas sites will continue to be popular due to the huge range they can offer, New Zealand sites can compete strongly on speed and service, which our research shows customers value the most.
Mighty Ape came out as kind of the local online retailers, according to consumers. It was the top online store for online satisfaction and received a slew of five-star ratings for speed of delivery, easy of site navigation, range of products, and range of brands.
But Kiwis are a little sceptical about Mighty Ape's pricing – it received 4 stars in this area.
Onceit was also another store that rated highly. It is an online shopping store that sells outlet designer goods like clothing and homeware. It rated 5 stars for value for money.
Ezibuy rated popular for clothing and homeware. It received five stars for range of products.
Further down the list, Farmers, Fishpond and NZSale also rounded out the top six online stores.
Farmers scored 4 stars for overall satisfaction, speed of delivery, and ease of site navigation, but three stars for value for money, range of brands, and range of products.
Fishpond also scored 4 stars for overall satisfaction, value for money, and ease of site navigation. It scored 3 stars for speed of delivery, range of brands, and range of products.
NZSale scored three stars for overall satisfaction, value for money, ease of site navigation, range of brands, and range of products. It scored 2 stars for speed of delivery.
