The survey reveals that India is increasingly engaging in cross border shopping with over 67% of respondents having made purchases from international businesses
Bengaluru: As many as 76% of Indian consumers perceive the quality of items from international sellers as superior, driving their cross-border shopping more than their consumer counterparts in the UK (27%) and the USA (35%), according to a survey by a tax compliance solutions provider Avalara, Inc.
The survey reveals that over 67% of respondents have made purchases from international businesses. This is in contrast to other markets like the US, where only 37% of consumers have made international purchases in the past year.
E-commerce platforms lead the way in shopping preferences in India with over 61% choosing platforms such as Amazon, eBay, and Etsy with strong demands for fashion products, followed by technology.
The survey, titled ‘Cross-Border Commerce and Compliance Survey,’ was conducted across India, US, UK, Denmark, Australia, Canada, Brazil, and Mexico, with over 8,200 respondents.
“As global cross-border commerce continues to expand, we conducted this survey to help businesses understand cross-border buying habits of consumers, identify factors impacting cart abandonment, as well as assess the role compliance plays in cross-border commerce,” said Dulles Krishnan, vice president at Avalara.
India is the third highest among the surveyed countries.
Despite the potential of direct cross-border purchases enabled through social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram, only 4.8% of Indian consumers choose this route.
However, Indian consumers reported the highest incidence of customs duties coming as a surprise, with 45% describing them as ‘shocking’. This is a stark contrast to Australian consumers, wherein 57% of Australian shoppers reported being well-informed about customs fees, the survey found.
