Online shopping: Click-and-collect demand grows

With Covid-19 almost a thing of the past, customers are increasingly choosing online shopping. Over the past two and a half years, Africa has seen a radical shift in retail with more merchants migrating online in an effort to simulate the brick-and-mortar store experience in a virtual environment.

From groceries to clothing, retailers quickly began offering the very same products customers love in-store, online. With this rapid migration to digital, retailers began to experience challenges in the e-commerce arena, which demands quick action  to retain customers and continuously attract new ones.

From user experience to checkout page optimisation, retailers need to zoom in on all the digital touch points to offer their customers the best possible purchasing journey, thereby mitigating the need to immediately seek assistance from an in-store consultant or assistant.

This means more budget will go into user experience design, website development and e-commerce build.

Support services including payment gateways and logistics services are becoming critical components of a successful online store for retailers expanding or even launching in 2022 and beyond.

“With more customers shopping online than ever before, the demand for reliable and convenient delivery services continues to rise. We work closely with retailers, including Clicks, Edgars and Faithful to Nature, while leveraging smart technology with actionable data and insights, to create innovative delivery methods that meet the growing demands of their customers.” says Lars Veul, co-founder of Pargo.

Last-mile challenges

Pargo is a South Africa-founded smart technology logistics start-up. It partners with online retailers in solving their last-mile challenges with convenient click and collect at thousands of pickup points across the country, seamless home delivery and easy paperless returns.

With the annual peak season around the corner, retailers are now looking to bolster their checkout experience by offering seamless payment options and convenient delivery methods to help support a robust and pleasing retail omni-channel experience.

Logistics is a business-critical component of the customer purchasing journey and online stores are making the strategic move to offer customers the convenience of click and collect as a delivery method.

“Particularly in the click and collect segment, we’re seeing more customers from all corners of the country wanting to shop their favourite brands online and collect wherever they are. This feeds directly into Pargo’s mission to create access for anybody in Africa. By this we mean creating a network of access points to deliver online orders exactly where customers want and are able to receive them.” says Veul.

Online retailers will favour click and collect this peak season to take advantage of the opportunity to expand their customer reach by engaging with new and repeat customers from anywhere in South Africa – unlocking a world of retail opportunities for every South African to collect their online order from their choice of thousands of pickup points.

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