Funding Circle survey reveals that despite Amazon's holiday dominance, majority of Prime members plan to support their local small businesses this season

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Funding Circle

Nov 13, 2018, 12:00 ET

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 13, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Funding Circle, the global small business loans platform, today published the results of a survey on US consumers' support for small businesses. It reveals that even as consumers do more of their holiday shopping online, 3 in 4 Amazon Prime members are still making the effort to shop at independent, local small businesses – and are willing to pay more to do so – rather than buying the same items on Amazon.

In the survey, 76% of Amazon Prime members – and 77% of all consumers – said they were willing to pay more for something at a local, independent small business rather than buying the same item on Amazon. A majority of these respondents (60%) said they would pay a 10% premium or more. When asked why, consumers said they would do this because they like supporting small businesses, keeping the money within their communities and supporting local jobs.

"With 100 million Amazon Prime members1 and counting, there has been much discussion around the 'Amazon effect' and what it means for the survival of local, independent small businesses," said Bernardo Martinez, US managing director, Funding Circle. "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."

Other survey findings include:

  • 77% of consumers say they've made a conscious choice at least once over the past month to shop at a local, independent small business rather than buying the same items on Amazon.
  • 74% of consumers did at least some of their holiday shopping at small businesses last year. Most say they plan to do the same amount this year.
  • 49% of consumers admitted to price-checking an item on Amazon while shopping in-store at a small business over the past month.
  • But even when the item was cheaper online, 45% of those consumers say they still made the purchase in store.
  • When asked what would encourage them to shop at small businesses more, consumers pointed to more convenience (51%), better selection (38%) and a better shopping experience (31%) as major factors. 

Funding Circle has helped US small businesses like Kate Lester Interiors access more than $1.7 billion in financing so far. Small business loans can be used to hire employees, purchase inventory, expand marketing or for other needs. Terms range from six months to five years, with consistent monthly payments and no prepayment penalties.

The survey of 2,171 US adult consumers was conducted October 19-21, 2018.

About Funding Circle:
Funding Circle (corporate.fundingcircle.com) is a global SME loans platform, connecting SMEs who want to borrow with investors who want to lend in the UK, the US, Germany and the Netherlands. Since launching in 2010, investors across Funding Circle's geographies —  including more than 85,000 retail investors, banks, asset management companies, insurance companies, government-backed entities and funds — have lent $7.8 billion to 56,000 businesses globally.

1 Amazon.com, Inc. 2017 Letter to Shareholders https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1018724/000119312518121161/d456916dex991.htm

SOURCE Funding Circle