Auto Parts eCommerce is Gaining
The Auto Parts & Accessories market is seeing continued robust gains online, fast-tracked by COVID, with eCommerce sales projected to increase from $16 billion in 2020 to more than $22 billion by 2023, according to a Hedges & Company forecast. Hedges & Company (Hedges) is a market research firm dedicated to serving the Automotive Aftermarket industry. To learn more about Hedges, visit hedgescompany.com. Hedges revised its forecast to reflect what it calls a “fundamental shift” in consumer buying behavior during the pandemic, shifting $1.9 billion of incremental revenue to the eCommerce channel in 2020. This represents a 30 percent gain over 2019. The North American auto parts eCommerce market was estimated to reach $20.6 billion in 2020.
The eCommerce portion of the Automotive Aftermarket demonstrates recession resistance, according to Hedges & Company, as more and more shoppers choose online as their preferred method of purchase. Online shopping has increased dramatically in terms of both business-to-business (B2B) and direct-to consumer (DTC) and includes purchases from both OEM and independent aftermarket suppliers.
While the 2021 annual sales forecast is still being finalized, Hedges is estimating that eCommerce growth in 2020 will likely be closer to 50 percent, beating the revised July forecast of 30 percent. While still a small percentage of overall aftermarket sales, eCommerce represents a significant area of future growth given the stickiness of channel sales, with the COVID pandemic an accelerator.
The COVID surge that began last May has shown little signs of slowing. This transformational shift will carry into 2021, according to Hedges, which predicts that by March, 35 to 50 percent more consumers will be buying auto parts and accessories online. In an analysis of nearly 100 million website visits, Hedges revealed a 50 percent average year-over-year increase in monthly online sales since April 2020, which compares to 14 percent pre-COVID.
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