Dixons targeting Nordic nations with e-commerce

Tuesday, September 13, 2011 - 13:24 by Mike Price

Consumer electronics giant Dixons is well known in the UK and it has been making a push to enter the Nordic market in recent years, with the latest news being that it will be focusing on establishing the brand as the home of safe shopping online, rather than continuing to target the high street.

Since 2008 there have been more than 16 Dixons outlets opened in Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland, but now the web will be its main channel for penetrating these nations, as the high street struggles to keep up with the growth being seen in the e-commerce market.

A 10 per cent dip in sales at Dixon's UK stores, PC World and Currys, have made it clear that a greater emphasis on promoting safe shopping online is the main method for the company to grow, in spite of problematic economic conditions.

The Nordic electronics market is actually very strong which makes it important for Dixons to get a real foothold there, with a 15 per cent sales increase over the last year indicating what it stands to gain in the future.

Of course by pulling back investment in a high street presence and focusing on e-commerce instead, there have been some analysts who claim that Dixons does not foresee an indefinite period of positive growth in Nordic nations.

Online shopping is allowing companies like Dixons to make the most out of multichannel retail strategies and brave turbulent times, during which the high street is quickly becoming barren and evolution is required to ensure survival.

Spokesperson, Ronny Blomberg, explained that Dixons is going to work hard to market its brand and explain its intentions to consumers, not just open as many stores as possible and hope for the best, based on limited appeal.