Auto Care Insider Volume 93 - 20

E-TAILING INSIGHTS
BROUGHT TO YOU BY

E-Tailing is the Automotive
Aftermarket's New Growth Engine
By Ioana Mazare, Automotive Marketing Manager, UPS
If your company doesn't have an online presence, you're missing an
important growth opportunity. The auto care industry's fastest growing
sales channel, e-tailing, is expanding so briskly that some industry
experts anticipate aftermarket e-tailing will double in size by 2018.
According to the Auto Care Association's recent E-Tailing in the
Automotive Aftermarket study, e-tailing now accounts for more than $6
billion, or 6 percent, of automotive aftermarket sales. In fact, e-tailing
will account for 20 percent, or $28.8 billion, of the industry's sales, and
these are conservative estimates. This online growth will dramatically
outperform brick-and-mortar automotive aftermarket sales, which are
flat. That means that auto care companies need to go online and do so
quickly to stay competitive and grow.
Of course, establishing an online presence needs to happen wisely. In the general retail space, e-commerce has been
around since late 1990s. With double digit growth for quite some time, e-commerce accounts for 7 percent of all retail
transactions. While auto care industry online sales have caught up with general retail, automotive companies should
consider several key differences for an optimal online experience: uniform parts reference, detailed product information,
the "touch and feel" dynamic and a learning component which makes the face-to-face customer experience more
significant and could keep stores a relevant part of the supply chain.
UPS's "What's Driving the Automotive Parts Online Shopper" study highlights how diverse the online customer base is.
The online channel includes 40 percent females and 28 percent millennials among automotive shoppers. That means
auto care companies can tap into a wider market that expands beyond typical brick and mortar store customers to open
up new opportunities.
The bottom line is that the automotive market is changing
rapidly and companies need to adapt and change with
it. Today that means that in order to stay competitive, the
supply chain needs to include a complete online experience.
Done well, the journey will start with research and end with
loyalty. Stay tuned for more on this topic.

Ioana Mazare is the Automotive Marketing Manager at UPS where she works
with automotive OEM and aftermarket manufacturers, distributors and retailers.

The Auto Care Insights is a series of research collaborations between the Auto Care Association and partner
organizations, diving deeper into hot topics in the industry. For more information, visit www.autocare.org.
20 AUTO CARE INSIDER | VOL. 93

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Auto Care Insider Volume 93

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