Physical stores here to stay despite e-commerce's meteoric rise

Only 4% of household spending is done online.

Singaporeans will continue to frequent physical stores despite online shopping's rising popularity.

A report by Flipit revealed that on average, only 4% of household spending is done online in Singapore. In-store sales grew to $52.4b in 2015, while online transactions accounted for $4.4b of all sales.

"E-commerce figures are on the rise, but this does not equate to a fall in in-store sales. Online and offline sales are growing together, not in spite of each other,” the report said.

Flipit noted that 56% of Singapore’s shoppers claimed that they prefer shopping at physical stores rather than online, while 85% said that they visit a physical store each month. Only 49% said that they visit an online store.

The report showed that Singaporeans love online shopping not only because of the city-state's strong mall culture but also because it is more social, allows shoppers to view products in person, provides in-store entertainment and the rise in omnichannel stores.