However, 44% of retailers who sell abroad will continue with their existing cross-border ecommerce operations, while 23% plan to invest more in growing their business outside the UK, according to a survey conducted by Global-E, an ecommerce services provider, ecommercenews.eu reports.
The study surveyed 250 UK retail decision-makers about the impact of Brexit on their business. One in three cross-border retailers said they’ve seen an increase in overseas sales, while one in five saw sales in the UK rise. Also, 30% have seen a fall and 47% say they’ve seen no impact at all.
Nir Debbi, co-founder of Global-E, comments: ”In order to avoid any negative impact on their cross-border sales and the customer experience offered to international clients, UK retailers selling internationally should be ready to react to this as legislation is agreed and be wary of the impact it could have on their EU customers.”
The study also shows that over two-thirds of UK retailers still have no plans for Brexit. But almost half of retailers expect the economy to weaken after the country triggers Article 50, making Brexit reality. “Although some retailers did revise their plans, our research suggests that most are taking a wait-and-see approach, before considering whether to change course”, Debbi explains. “In the months since the EU referendum took place, most retailers have already felt some impact, with many of those that operate internationally seeing an increase in sales from online shoppers worldwide due to the weakened pound and growing trend for cross-border ecommerce.”
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