The Impact of Cultural and Social Factors on Online Shopping in New Zealand
Cultural and Social Aspects
The culture of buying footwear online is very much present in New Zealand, with their online shopping expenditure to reach $3.19 billion, a growth of 19 percent since 2011. 1.9 million New Zealanders over the age of 15 will make online purchases, with retail categories with the strongest growth being the clothing and footwear categories (Pwc 2012). Almost half of New Zealand’s population will shop online in 2011 with each shopper spending an average of NZ$1,400. Consumers are looking to find more variety with the best price on offer and online sales creates the platform for them to do so, with the ability to compare prices from many local and international stores.
New Zealanders also has a high adoption of social media, with 81 percent of online shoppers using Facebook within the last 12 months. This has allowed social media to be an integral tool in the online shopping process, as evidenced by more than one third of online shoppers in New Zealand following an online shopping site on Facebook (Business to Business, n.d.).
In terms of their culture for doing business in New Zealand, they are not of the bargaining culture and they look for value for money in a business (Kwintessential n.d.). In Forbes’s annual list of Best countries for Business, it was ranked number one, citing that its “transparent and stable business climate that encourages entrepreneurship”.
In the 11 metrics that Forbes examined, New Zealand ranked in first in four of those metrics including personal freedom, investor protection, lack of red tape and corruption (New Zealand 2012).
New Zealand is a good place for overseas investors as it is open, stable and a well governed country. Though a small country, New Zealanders are smart, innovative and efficient in how they go about doing their business. The working environment in New Zealand is said to be very easy as people are generally very straightforward and down to earth. They typically respect a
The culture of buying footwear online is very much present in New Zealand, with their online shopping expenditure to reach $3.19 billion, a growth of 19 percent since 2011. 1.9 million New Zealanders over the age of 15 will make online purchases, with retail categories with the strongest growth being the clothing and footwear categories (Pwc 2012). Almost half of New Zealand’s population will shop online in 2011 with each shopper spending an average of NZ$1,400. Consumers are looking to find more variety with the best price on offer and online sales creates the platform for them to do so, with the ability to compare prices from many local and international stores.
New Zealanders also has a high adoption of social media, with 81 percent of online shoppers using Facebook within the last 12 months. This has allowed social media to be an integral tool in the online shopping process, as evidenced by more than one third of online shoppers in New Zealand following an online shopping site on Facebook (Business to Business, n.d.).
In terms of their culture for doing business in New Zealand, they are not of the bargaining culture and they look for value for money in a business (Kwintessential n.d.). In Forbes’s annual list of Best countries for Business, it was ranked number one, citing that its “transparent and stable business climate that encourages entrepreneurship”.
In the 11 metrics that Forbes examined, New Zealand ranked in first in four of those metrics including personal freedom, investor protection, lack of red tape and corruption (New Zealand 2012).
New Zealand is a good place for overseas investors as it is open, stable and a well governed country. Though a small country, New Zealanders are smart, innovative and efficient in how they go about doing their business. The working environment in New Zealand is said to be very easy as people are generally very straightforward and down to earth. They typically respect a
References: Euromonitor International 2012, New Zealand Consumers in 2020: A Look into the Future. Available from: <http://blog.euromonitor.com/2012/01/new-zealand-consumers-in-2020-a-look-into-the-future.html>. [30 March 2013]. Pwc 2012, Australian and New Zealand Online Shopping Market and Digital Insights. Available from: <http://www.pwc.co.nz/retail-consumer-industry/publications/australian-new-zealand-online-shopping-market-digital-insights/>. [30 March 2013]. New Zealand 2012, New Zealand Best Country in the World for Business. Available from: <http://business.newzealand.com/auspac/en/news-and-events/news/new-zealand-best-country-in-the-world-for-business/>. [30 March 2013]. New Zealand 2011, Invest in New Zealand. Available from: <http://business.newzealand.com/northamerica/en/invest-in-new-zealand/>. [30 March 2013]. Business to Business n.d., More New Zealanders Shopping Online and Overseas than ever. Available from: <http://www.btob.co.nz/article/more-new-zealanders-shopping-online-–-and-overseas-–-ever>. [29 March 2013]. Kwintessential n.d., New Zealand-Culture, Etiquette and Customs. Available from: <http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/new-zealand.html>. [30 March 2013].