Soar in online shopping
How the pandemic has caused a perfect storm for online retail – and why it’s set to continue
Sponsored
7 Feb 2021, 8:00
FOR a good portion of the last year, online has been the only option for many of us trying to buy anything beyond our grocery essentials.
The resulting surge in demand for digital shopping has seen soaring sales for international online giants like Amazon, Zalando, Otto, Boohoo and Asos.
5
5
Joachim Goyvaerts, director of Benelux and Ireland for PayPal
But there have also been opportunities for smaller, more local retailers that have been able to tap into this increased online demand and a growing sentiment towards supporting local – and often struggling – businesses.
Updated: 6 Feb 2021, 23:54
USING a credit or debit card when paying for online purchases is relatively safe but there are lots of things to look out for if you want to reduce your chances of being the victim of fraud.
Concerns about security don’t seem to be too much of a barrier to buying online: figures from Eurostat indicate that just 4% of people in Ireland did not shop online in 2019 because of payment security or privacy concerns, such as fraudulent use of payment card details.
3
3
Recie Breen, head of credit cards at Bank of IrelandCredit: Fennell Photography
This compares with 6% of people in the EU overall and 23% of people in Portugal.