The number of online shoppers worldwide is projected to reach 2 billion in 2020, according to Oberlo, an e-commerce company.
As of 2020, there are roughly 7.8 billion people in the world. That means just over a quarter of the world’s population are online shoppers.
As the accompanying graph shows, that’s up from 1.3 billion in 2014, and the number is projected to reach 2.1 billion in 2021. The trend of increased online shopping is having a big impact on last-mile delivery. Instead of consumers going to brick-and-mortar retail stores, they order merchandise online, and it’s delivered by the Post Office, UPS or FedEx, or Amazon, which is operating its own delivery service.
However, that shift does not impact pallet demand much because pallets are not used in the last-mile delivery scenario.
The trend is challenging retailers, though. Some of them offer in-store (or at-store pick-up) for goods purchased online. Their brick-and-mortar stores are challenged to provide warehouse and distribution center services while still functioning as a retail store. This could create opportunities for pallet suppliers to provide half-size pallets to ship small orders of products to stores.
Retailers are focusing on speed and accuracy in logistics. Pallets need to be compatible with automated equipment and systems in warehouses and distribution centers. Retailers also want their goods protected from damage, so pallet quality may become more important.
Amazon is open to white-wood pallets, so it may be an opportunity for pallet suppliers as the traditional retail model shrinks with respect to online shopping.
