NATIONAL PULSE – We prefer physical stores, but increasingly shop online
Internet shopping has become the biggest competitor for retail stores.
Entertainment media by far the commodity
Canadians most prefer to buy online
December 11, 2017 – It’s been a rough couple of years for retail giants. Even as the economy booms, Sears Canada and other large chains are going bust.
The culprit? There are several, but the biggest one by far is the continued growth of online shopping.
“Ecommerce” – as economists often call it – has been up significantly in Canada this year, and new polling data from the Angus Reid Institute suggests that most Canadians expect this trend to continue.
Two-in-three Canadians (65%) say they expect to do a greater proportion of their shopping online in the next year or two, and one-in-five (19%) expect to soon be making the majority of their non-food purchases on the internet – if they aren’t already.
That said, three-in-four Canadians (74%) say they still prefer to shop in brick-and-mortar stores if given the choice, a preference that extends to every product category canvassed except entertainment media.
More Key Findings:
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- Roughly half of all Canadians (48%) report making purchases online at least once per month, including one-in-ten (11%) who do so once a week or more. The rest buy online less often (46%) or not at all (7%)
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- Age is a significant driver of online shopping behaviour. Younger respondents are more likely than other age groups to shop online and more likely to express a preference for web-based stores over physical ones
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- Six-in-ten (60%) prefer to buy their entertainment (books, music, movies, etc.) on the internet, but even larger majorities prefer to buy electronics (67%), clothing (82%), and tools (82%) in physical stores
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Link to the poll here: www.angusreid.org/canadian-online-shopping
ArmchairMayor.ca 
Having several trucks on the farm I now buy parts,on line, like water pumps,alternators,brake parts; you name it, from the States for at the very least half the price,on occasion a third, including US postage which is half that of Canada Post and with an 80 cent dollar. If I were a staunch unthinking Canadian patriot I might feel guilty.I don,t.
I buy certain items online, but never clothing or electronics. I want to try clothes on in person, and I want to physically touch & try out computers, and tablets before I purchase them.