What percentage of floor coverings are being sold online? I’ve heard estimates as high a 20%, I’ve also heard ones as low as 3%. I’m not sure whether the 20% estimate is believable and I’m not sure if goods ordered online and picked up by the customer, such as the option offered by the big boxes, are included in that 20%—I really can’t say. But whatever the percentage is, it will be bigger next year and even bigger in five years, and 10 years down the road.
I suspect that just about every independent retailer who expects to be around in five to 10 years would very much like to get his or her share of this digital growth, but that’s a lot easier said than done. There are many independents that have been doing business online for years. They are in the minority and have made the investment, paid their dues and got their education the hard way. Doing that in today’s environment, however, is difficult, costly and for the most part reserved for bigger independents with deeper pockets.