Five major development trends of DTC e-commerce in 2022

Direct-to-consumer ( DTC ) e-commerce has changed how consumers interact with brands and how they purchase nearly everything . Even before the pandemic , DTC brands were considered a digitally savvy retail category .

Today , traditional retailers and brand manufacturers have applied the valuable lessons they learned from DTC brands to real-world operations in their fight for the future of e-commerce.

Take Nike as an example . A few years before the pandemic , the brand had already begun to withdraw from department stores and turn to online sales. In the first quarter of 2020, Nike 's bet on DTC paid off , and its e-commerce sales soared 82% .

In fact , both DTC companies and traditional retailers can seek development from this model. The following are five DTC e-commerce development trends worth paying attention to in 2022 .

More traditional retailers will adopt DTC : In order to compete with online DTC brands, some large retailers will also choose the DTC model . As the foot traffic in physical stores decreases , retailers will follow the trend of DTC brands and reach consumers through the Internet .

DTC brands will expand product categories : The epidemic has suppressed the growth of many brands , but at the same time, it has also led to an increase in demand for sports and leisure and personal care products among consumers working from home , and these products and adjacent categories will continue to develop .

Consumers will continue to gravitate toward DTC brands : At the start of the pandemic , one of the most pressing needs for retailers was an efficient e-commerce platform . DTC brands already have their own platforms , giving them an early advantage.

Nearly two years later, consumers are still spending less time in physical stores and more time on their devices . E-commerce sales in the United States increased 45.6% in the third quarter of 2021 compared to the third quarter of 2019 .

DTC brand systems will continue to be optimized: Many DTC brand companies are working on solutions to enhance the performance and functionality of their existing websites . DTC brands can provide full-service technical support for stores from globally distributed servers with a simple click of a button .

Return service will become a competitive differentiator : Customers attach great importance to return policies. According to Forrester research, consumers in France, the UK and the US prefer online retailers that offer free returns . It is not difficult to predict that retailers and brands will simplify the return process and optimize related after-sales services to retain customers.

From supply chain issues to consumers ’ rising expectations, e-commerce faces many challenges in the coming year . Brands and sellers who understand the relevant DTC development trends will be able to cope with these challenges well, attract new customers and thrive in the coming year.

E-commerce platform

DTC

Enterprise Transformation