Stay ahead of the curve and future-proof your business with Mintel’s Germany Direct to Consumer Retail Market Report 2023. Our full report is packed with consumer-led market intelligence, direct to consumer retail trends in Germany, and consumer behaviours affecting your industry. Get a 360° view of direct to consumer retailing in Germany including market size, share, and a growth forecast to help you align your business strategy with the needs of your audience.
Below, we’ve handpicked the key insights analysed in the full report and summarised the core topics.
Topics Analysed in this Report
- A detailed market outlook on direct to consumer retailing in Germany, including market drivers and expert insights.
- The impact of the cost of living crisis on direct to consumer (D2C) brand engagement and purchasing.
- How consumers shop with direct to consumer retail brands, what they buy, and factors that would encourage consumers to buy directly from brands.
- Consumer attitudes towards trying new brands.
- Opportunities and developments for direct to consumer retail brands, including trends and strategies.
- How your business can tap into opportunities to increase your market share in the direct to consumer retail sector in Germany.
An Overview of Direct to Consumer Retail in Germany
Mintel’s market research shows that rising inflation has led many German consumers to be more hesitant when trying new brands. This poses a particular challenge for new brands seeking to use the direct to consumer channel to break through.
Within the direct to consumer retail sector, clothing is the most dominant category, aligning with fashion and accessories having the largest category share of D2C brands in 2023 with 15.8% of total online D2C revenue.
Direct to Consumer Retailing in Germany: What Consumers Want and Why
- Direct to Consumer Retail & Inflation: The cost of living crisis has made 60% of German consumers hesitant to try new brands, as they worry about spending limited discretionary income on products that don’t meet their expectations, creating a challenging market environment. However, this can also provide an opportunity for direct to consumer retail brands looking to build a closer relationship with their customers. Once inflation rates decrease, consumer confidence will improve, making them more open to trying new things.
- Value is Key: Due to squeezed budgets, value is a key driver. Germans aren’t only seeking for value for money, but also for brands whose ethical values align with their own – 54% of Germans try to only buy products from brands that conform to their values and they aren’t afraid to switch brands if they are dissatisfied. D2C channels enable brands to get closer to consumers and better control the messaging to align with consumer demand.
- Where Do German Consumers Buy? In-store shopping remains popular in Germany with 26% of shoppers saying they like to buy directly from brands through physical stores. D2C brands can respond to this by creating multisensory shopping experiences by merging shopping and tailored service with experiential aspects, for example workshops, labs, and personalised advice.
A Market Forecast for Direct to Consumer Retailing in Germany
- As technology evolves, AI will enable smaller direct to consumer retail brands to create a more personalised and localised brand experience.
To learn how to connect with your audience, purchase our Germany Direct to Consumer Retail Market Report 2023 in full. Reveal lucrative innovation opportunities to help your business grow during times of financial uncertainty.
Products and Brands Discussed in this Report
Brands: Amazon, Meta, eBay, ARES, Snap, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Pinterest, Facebook, Twitch, Vorwerk, Gap, LoveShackFancy, LevlUp, EloTRiX, Waldhaus, Gambette, Zalando, Nike, 24COLOURS, Douglas, Glossier, Gymshark, Rituals, mymuesli, Bluefarm, The Female Company, KoRo, ooohne, JUNGLÜCK, Purelei, everdrop, Kraft-Heinz, Just Spices, and many more.
Products: Clothing, footwear, food & drink for at home consumption, beauty and personal care products, household cleaning products, personal electronics, furniture, home accessories, jewellery, watches, gaming, and more.
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- Interactive Databook: Each Databook is provided as an interactive website where you can deep dive into our consumer research data on your chosen topic so you can draw your own conclusions.
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Expert Insights on Direct to Consumer Retail in Germany
This report, written by Charlotte Sander, Associate Analyst, delivers in-depth commentary and analysis to highlight direct to consumer retail trends in Germany and add expert context to the numbers.
During times of economic difficulties, selling directly to customers allows brands to build a closer relationship with consumers by offering personalised experiences.
Charlotte Sander
Associate Analyst
Collapse All
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- Key issues covered in this Report
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Executive summary
- Market context
- Opportunities
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market drivers
- The German economy
- Graph 1: key economic data, in real terms, 2019-24
- Graph 2: financial confidence index, 2022-23
- The impact of the economy on D2C brands
- Graph 3: consumer price index, 2020-23
- Online sales
- Graph 4: Amazon used in the past year, 2023
- Graph 5: social media in relation to online purchases among 18-25 year olds, 2023
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What consumers want and why
- Products bought directly from a brand
- Graph 6: types of products bought directly from a brand, 2023
- D2C purchase channels
- D2C shopping frequency
- Graph 7: purchase frequency changes from direct to consumer brands, 2023
- Graph 8: purchase frequency changes in clothing, by gender, 2023
- Graph 9: purchase frequency changes of beauty and personal care products, by age, 2023
- Factors for D2C purchases
- Graph 10: purchasing factors for direct to consumer channels over third-party retailers, 2023
- Behaviour towards D2C
- Graph 11: behaviour towards direct to consumer retailing, 2023
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Direct to consumer Trends and strategies
- Trends in the D2C market
- Strategies in the D2C market
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Appendix
- Appendix – products covered, abbreviations and consumer research methodology and language usage
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