The Amazon Effect: How Gen Z Expects Fast Deliveries

E-commerce giants pride themselves on super-fast deliveries, while some smaller retailers insist it is the personal touch that matters. But taking the time to perfect deliveries, it seems, can take a toll, particularly when you are in competition with an online store like Amazon. "[Amazon] are a threat because they're big businesses, are global businesses, with incredibly large budgets," Moss & Spy founder Lia Tsimos said. E-commerce tech platform Shippit monitors and delivers hundreds of millions of parcel deliveries in Australia every year. Its survey suggests 51 per cent of the gen Z cohort have had their delivery time expectations set by Amazon. At the same time, 64 per cent of all consumers said they would ditch a brand after a "poor delivery experience", something Ms Tsimos knows all too well. "We would have a complaint or question, 'where is my order, why is it taking so long?'" she told ABC News. Amazon sets the tone Amazon insists its faster delivery times benefit all Australians. But Shippit says that in order to survive, a fifth of Australian retailers are turning their shop floors into mini-warehouses, shipping orders straight from the store to get parcels out faster. "What we've found, though, is the businesses of yesteryear, which just used to sell the exact same products as larger businesses and trying to compete based on price, is no longer a sustainable business model," joint chief executive of Shippit, Rob Hango-Zada, said. It is a potential gift for customers, as younger Australians look for convenience as well as value. "I mean, our customers are women," Lia Tsimos said. "They're busy, they're mums, they're working to be able to just shop online after hours and to know that you'll receive a package within 24 hours is fantastic. "It's going to be repeat business. "It gives the customer a lot of confidence." Aiming to be different Kellie Richardson is the owner and principal interior designer of Kurved by Design. The success of her business boils down to customer satisfaction and word-of-mouth referrals. "It's a lot more personal." That is anything including online shopping, in-store purchases or variety of products. While she said a lot of people were still using Amazon, her strategy seemed to be paying off, particularly with older generations, because people craved the connection. "A lot of people are coming back for customer service … they're coming back for that personalisation," she said.