DS Smith focuses on e-commerce with the launch of ePack

DS Smith is expanding in the digital space with the launch of ePack, the industry’s first e-commerce platform, in Italy and Spain. This decision follows unprecedented growth in online sales in the UK, where the company has reported a 700% upturn in demand over the last twelve months.

The pandemic has driven exponential growth in online purchases in sectors such as clothing and food, the latter in particular experiencing a surge in purchases from 9% to 63%.

ePack offers e-retailers 100% sustainable packaging such as fully recyclable paper bags and fibre boxes and supports DS Smith’s presence across Europe, where more than 200 factories produce paper-based packaging for the world’s largest brands.

“Italian consumers are becoming increasingly aware and prefer to buy from brands that use recyclable, biodegradable or easily reusable materials,” said Francesco Barsanti, Sales Marketing and Innovation Director Italy. “With the growth in online shopping, packaging becomes the first point of physical contact between the company and the customer, serving as a calling card for the company’s sustainability strategies and playing a major role in the retention process.”

Italian consumers’ preference for green packaging was also confirmed by a recent Ipsos Mori survey commissioned by DS Smith, which revealed that 40% of respondents would like to see fully recyclable packaging. 31% of these said they had stopped buying products from certain brands because their packaging was not sustainable.