Sweden and Norway drive market growth
In 2022, the Nordic fashion e-commerce revenue is estimated at roughly 13 billion U.S. dollars. Sweden and Norway are home to the biggest e-commerce markets, even though Norway’s population represents around half of Sweden's. Likewise, their fashion e-commerce markets are the two most relevant in the region, worth around four and three billion U.S. dollars, respectively. The online fashion industry in Denmark and Finland is comparatively small, each valued at roughly two billion U.S dollars. Based on growth projections, the whole region's fashion e-commerce revenue will amount to around 20 billion U.S. dollars by 2025.A game for international and local players
Zalando, H&M, and SHEIN are the leading international players in the region. The German fashion retailer Zalando ranks as the top marketplace by net sales and is extremely popular among mobile users in Norway, Finland, and Denmark. By contrast, competitor H&M was the top online fashion store in Sweden. Surprisingly, the Chinese online fast-fashion retailer SHEIN beat H&M by more than double the downloads for the leading fashion and beauty app in Sweden in early 2022.In the Nordics, worldwide-known brands compete with strong domestic brands. Local brands are more trustworthy to the consumer, provide them with platforms in their native languages, and can ensure fast delivery. Nelly is a successful example of this trend; the brand has succeeded at representing the Northern style and harnessing the strong Swedish influencer marketing culture. The Swedish online fashion retailer has seen a steady increase in revenue. Likewise, Bubbleroom, Boozt, and Ellos are becoming more popular by catering to young Nordic women.
The future of retail
Nordic people are known to have technologically advanced societies, so there is no surprise that consumers use digital resources when shopping. Digital channels were so important for consumers in 2021, that a notable percentage of Nordic shoppers researched products online before making a purchase decision, showing that online channels are essential even to the in-store shopping experience.Still, there are reasons why Northern consumers are hesitant about buying fashion online. Danish consumers miss the ability to feel the garments’ quality and see what they look like in real life. Online fashion stores also lack the professional advice and the human contact that physical retailers offer. The main challenge for online stores is to integrate more interactive digital features that can bridge the gap with in-store shopping.
