Yes! Eurocrates could help you to sell online in 27 European countries! This is probably your best opportunity to get your tailored french website and start doing serious business with one of the biggest e-commerce market in the World.

Who else wants to be a successful Europreneur?

If you wonder why you cannot do business in the European Union then read what Brussels Consumer Comissioner, Meglena Kuneva says about the e-commerce situation in Europe.

Interesting facts about e-commerce in the EU.

While e-commerce market takes off at domestic level in most European countries, it is still relatively uncommon for consumers to use the internet to purchase goods or services in another EU country.
As a result, the gap between national and cross-border e-commerce is increasing: from 2006 to 2008, the share of all EU consumers that have bought at least one item over the internet increased from 27% to 33% while cross border e-commerce remained stable (6% to 7%).

The pattern is similar for European users with internet access at home:

- 56% of consumers with the internet at home have made an purchase on the internet in any country including their own. There were in comparison 50% in 2006.
- 13% of European internet users access at home have made a cross-border e-commerce purchase, compared to 12% in 2006.

However, this picture tends to vary at European country level.
The percentage of consumers having bought goods or services from a seller located in another EU state varies from 38% in Luxembourg to 2% in Portugal.

Smaller EU state members such Luxembourg, Cyprus, Malta, Denmark, and Ireland are much more open to cross-border online shopping than the bigger ones.

Countries where online shopping is already well developed such as the UK, the Nordic countries, the Benelux, for instance have correspondingly higher rates of cross-border online shopping.

To what extent do European businesses sell to another country?

Among retailers, the cross-border potential of e-commerce also seems to be poorly exploited:

51% of EU27 retailers sell via the internet, but only 21% are currently conducting cross-border transactions. Actually the figures show a 7 points drop from 29% in 2006 to 21% in 2008.

Internet cross-border advertising also shows the same figures (21% in 2008).

One in five EU retailers (21%) sell cross-border, via distance sales methods, to at least one other EU country.

On the other side, 75% of EU retailers sell in their own domestic market.

European retailers who conduct in other EU state members tend usually to trade with very few countries. Only 4% of those retailers trade with 10 or more Member States. But the vast majority trade only with one or two other European countries.

This may also show the tendency of some large online retailers to establish in several European countries. Businesses most likely to be involved in cross-border retailing are medium and medium-large retail enterprises, with a limited number of outlets in other European countries and with existing language capabilities.

European SME retailers appear to be particularly reluctant to embrace the opportunities of e-commerce to trade with other european clientele.

What about you? How long will you wait until you get your european e-commerce website