Funding Circle US: Consumers will eschew Amazon to support small firms
FUNDING Circle US has found that the majority of US consumers still make the effort to shop at independent small businesses and would be willing to pay more for the same item than it costs at e-commerce giant Amazon.
The peer-to-peer business lender, which recently floated on the London Stock Exchange, published the results of a survey on US consumers’ support for small businesses.
It found that 77 per cent of 2,171 US adults surveyed said they were willing to pay more for items at small businesses in order to keep money within their communities and support local jobs.
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60 per cent of respondents said they would pay a 10 per cent premium or more on Amazon prices.
When asked what would encourage them to shop at small businesses more, consumers cited more convenience (51 per cent), better selection (38 per cent) and a better shopping experience (31 per cent) as major factors.
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“It’s great to see that consumers still see value in supporting small businesses who can provide things that no e-commerce giant can ever match, like immediate convenience and deep ties to the local community,” said Bernardo Martinez, US managing director at Funding Circle.
Funding Circle has lent out $7.8bn (£6bn) to 56,000 businesses across the UK, the US, Germany and the Netherlands to date.
