“E-Retailer Yearbook 2021” is here!

A comprehensive overview of e-commerce in the DACH region awaits you on about 100 pages of the “E-Retailer Yearbook 2021” — from the impact of the pandemic on online sales and the challenges of today’s customer service to headless commerce, best-in-class print catalogs and most successful e-commerce personalities of 2020. You will also receive a detailed market analysis of the most important e-commerce sectors — from electronics and fashion to food and furniture.

“E-Retailer Yearbook 2021” is the annual overview of mail order, cross-channel retail and e-commerce in the DACH region (covering Germany, Austria, and Switzerland). The yearbook is published by HighText Verlag München in cooperation with the German E-commerce and Distance Selling Trade Association (Bundesverband E-commerce und Versandhandel Deutschland e.V. — bevh).

How will German e-commerce look like in 2025?

One of the most interesting parts of the yearbook — especially for e-commerce practitioners — are the results of a long-term analysis of the German online trade development until 2025. The study covers 10 of the most important e-commerce segments, i.e. books, clothing and textiles, computers and accessories, consumer electronics, furniture, food, jewelry, office supplies, pet supplies, and toys.

In addition to insightful data showing the dynamics of the share of online sales in individual industries from 2007 through 2019, you can also find here a detailed analysis of trends in each segment, as well as scenarios for 2025.

According to the study, in 2019, consumer electronics accounted for the largest share of online in the segment’s total sales — almost 66 percent. FMCG, by contrast, had the lowest rate with only 0.9 percent of total sales made online.

As for the future, the analysis attempts to answer a number of important questions such as:

• what share of online sales will be in each industry in 2025
• which e-commerce segments will gradually reach their saturation points
• which segments will grow particularly fast
• which segments will become niche
• which segments will put the highest pressure on the stationary trade.

Who was voted the e-retailer of 2020?

The publication also reveals who became the winner of the “E-Retailer of the Year” award in 2020. This prestigious industry prize is presented annually to professionals dealing with various aspects of online sales in German-speaking Europe.

The jury — representing the editorial offices of iBusiness.de, ONEtoONE.de and Versandhausberater.de, as well as the sponsor and bevh — prepared a shortlist of 42 top experts and professionals in the field of e-commerce and mail order. The winner was selected through online voting by registered users of the three industry portals mentioned.

This year, as many as 76,000 users took part in the vote. Each of them could select up to three favorites whose achievements were particularly impressive and who they considered most deserving of the award.

The “E-Retailer of the Year 2020” prize was received by Melanie Plank, Head of E-Commerce at Witt Group. The second and third places were taken respectively by Claudia Bolten (Managing Director Non-Food at real.digital) and Sebastian Bomm (Director User Experience & Customer Intelligence at Rose Bikes GmbH).

Download the yearbook for free to read an interesting interview with the winner and get to know the other professionals who the jury considered the most influential people in e-commerce in the DACH region.

What were the best catalogs in 2019?

In the publication, you can also find the results of the contest for the best German-language catalogs, which have been published throughout 2019. This renowned prize was awarded for the 19th time by the mail order industry journal “Versandhausberater”.

Several dozens of catalogs were submitted to the contest. The jury, consisting of recognized catalog experts, assessed all publications rigorously, based on 29 evaluation criteria, which included not only layout and design, but also overall concept, content creation, as well as marketing and sales values.

The jury selected eight best catalogs — five of them formed a shortlist for B2C and the remaining three — for B2B.

Finally, in the category “B2B Catalogue of the Year”, the award was given to Raja Deutschland, a leading distributor of packaging for all business needs, from protection, to sealing, to shipping, to wrapping.

The “B2C Catalogue of the Year” award was presented to the Austrian company Grüne Erde GmbH, which specializes in manufacturing and selling ecological, sustainable and socially fair products, including furniture, mattresses, sleeping and home textiles, ecological fashion and natural cosmetics.

Inside the yearbook, you can find extensive presentations of both the winning and the remaining 6 catalogs, which the jury also ranked among the best publications of 2019.