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The e-commerce sector in Germany, which has long been characterized by steady growth, recorded a decrease in revenue for the first time in 2022. According to a recent study by EHI and ecommerceDB, the top 1,000 B2C online shops experienced a net decrease of 2.8 percent (unadjusted for price), resulting in a loss of 2.2 billion euros, bringing the total revenue down to 77.7 billion euros. This marks the temporary halt of the continuous growth of the German online retail sector, which had extended over a period of 15 years.
Reasons for the Decline in E-Commerce Revenue
The revenue decline in 2022 can be attributed to various factors. On one hand, some online shops are struggling with significant losses, while others are exiting the market for economic reasons. On the other hand, smaller online shops, in particular, have shown significant relative growth. Despite the decline, the overall revenue of the top 1,000 shops remains 1.5 times higher than before the COVID-19 pandemic. Nevertheless, the general consumer sentiment and online purchasing willingness in Germany weakened in 2022, leading to a declining trend.
Growth of Smaller Online Shops and Slight Decrease in Market Concentration
Despite the revenue decline among large online shops, smaller B2C online shops in the lower rankings experienced significant growth of 7.3 percent compared to the previous year. This demonstrates that the German e-commerce market still maintains some diversity. However, the market remains highly concentrated, with the top 100 online shops accounting for more than 70 percent of the total revenue of the top 1,000. Due to the revenue declines in the large online shops, market concentration has slightly decreased. The net e-commerce revenue of this year's top 10 decreased by 9.7 percent compared to the previous year, representing 38.2 percent of the total.
The Top 10 B2C Online Shops in Germany
In the ranking of the top 10 B2C online shops in Germany, there were some changes. While amazon.de and otto.de continue to occupy the first two positions, aboutyou.de entered the top 10 for the first time with a growth of 8.8 percent. Zalando.de maintained its fourth position from the previous year, displacing mediamarkt.de to the third position. In addition, there were two newcomers in the top 20: shop.rewe.de and bestsecret.com. The biggest growth drivers among the top 10 B2C online shops were apple.com (+18.2 percent), breuninger.com (+16.1 percent), and shop-apotheke.com (+15.9 percent).
The Top 10 B2C Marketplaces in Germany
The study also includes a list of the top 10 B2C marketplaces in Germany. In 2022, these marketplaces generated a total revenue of 72.8 billion euros, representing a decrease of 2.4 percent compared to the previous year. Market leader amazon.de maintains its top position with a gross merchandise volume of 46.3 billion euros, followed by ebay.de (9.0 billion euros) and otto.de (6.4 billion euros).
About ecommerceDB and the EHI Research Area E-Commerce
ecommerceDB is a comprehensive database providing detailed information on over 42,000 shops, marketplaces, and companies in more than 59 countries and 18 categories. In addition to revenue and competitor analyses, it also includes information on e-commerce metrics and national e-commerce markets. The EHI Research Area E-Commerce analyzes the German-speaking B2C online trade and hosts EHI Connect, a platform for the exchange and discussion of current e-commerce trends.
For more information about EHI's research and studies, visit https://www.ehi.org/wissen/forschung/