Just North

E-commerce sales have increased every year since 1998. The Dot Com boom of the late 1990s catapulted online shopping to a national phenomenon, bringing the value of all sales over $1.0 billion for the first time ever. Online ordering offers several advantages over going to a brick-and-mortar store, such as the ability to find desired products quickly, a wider selection and convenient delivery. Retailers of a myriad of products, from food to automotive parts to electronics, have increasingly relied on e-commerce to conduct business. Furthermore, as online platforms become more sophisticated, consumers find buying some products online easier than traveling to a local brick-and-mortar retailer. The proliferation of mobile devices has also supported this trend, and in some product categories, online sales via mobile devices have surpassed PC sales.

Moreover, many retailers have increasingly expanded their online presence to target and influence particular customer bases, notably with the use of interactive content, videos and Instagram sponsorships, among other methods. In particular, mobile purchases are consistently rising as a share of total e-commerce sales, which has incited some retailers to tailor their digital content for mobile viewers. As a result of the proliferation of cellular phones with internet connections and nearly ubiquitous Wi-Fi hot spots around the country, e-commerce sales experienced double-digit growth every year. 

Similarly, online only and direct to consumer retailing has grown substantially over the period. Consumers, especially in urban areas are increasingly relying on online shopping. The variety of products offered online has expanded to allow many consumers to have everything delivered straight to their door step. Many companies, such as Amazon, allow consumers to place reoccurring online orders for household items that you need on a monthly basis. This retail platform has accelerated in its adaptations from consumers.

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing measures generated a surge in e-commerce sales. Physical retailers, both large and small, scrambled to protect their revenue streams by investing in the necessary infrastructure to shift some of their business models online. Meanwhile, existing e-tailers experienced surges in demand, mostly due to high demand for essential goods. As a result, e-commerce sales increased as a share of total retail sales to a higher level than was previously anticipated. Overall, e-commerce sales increased globally by 39.1% in 2020, improving on its relative outperformance of total retail sales in the last decade. However, a significant portion of this growth is in a sense borrowed from 2021, as the ongoing full reopening of the economy resulted in a relative surge of brick-and-mortar retail sales as opposed to e-commerce, particularly with an expanding vaccine rollout. Even so, e-commerce sales accounted for nearly 19% of total retail sales in 2021, with e-commerce sales returning to slightly below its pre-pandemic growth trend. In 2023, as the Canadian economy continues to recover from the pandemic, e-commerce sales are expected to increase 6.8%.

While the COVID pandemic expedited the shift to online commerce in Canada, many small businesses found themselves in a forced position to move or expand their online presence. Many companies developed standalone e-commerce stores where the majority of traffic and customers come from paid sources, such as Facebook, Instagram, and Google advertising. With the demand for ad space on the rise due to an influx of not just local, but international competitors, costs have surged and depleted many of these small businesses hard-earned profits. An alternative solution for many small retailers is to sell their products on global platforms like Amazon. While these sites come with massive amounts of traffic and provide turn key business solutions to sell products online, businesses compete with thousands of other products and sellers. If they become recognized, they have to provide a 15% fee on all sales to the platform, essentially leaving them in the same place. This is in addition to other costs such as FBA and closing fees. Both options result in small Canadian businesses suffering, while global conglomerates thrive. 

Currently there are over 300,000 independently run e-commerce stores operating throughout Canada. To date there is no centralized solution that allows Canadian consumers to discover these brands in one place and purchase from multiple of them via a single transaction.

The Business

JustNorth is an innovative online marketplace that supports small businesses in Canada by providing a platform for retailers and consumers to connect with a focus on transparency and supportiveness. With automatic integration with standalone ecommerce stores, consumers have the ability to engage, discover and purchase from multiple Canadian brands through a single transaction.

A social feed feature will provide consumers value by bridging the current market gap of where they research and discover brands, and where they complete the actual transaction. It will be a platform that allows fellow consumers and brands to communicate and educate.

The Market

JustNorth is headquartered in Barrie, Ontario and caters solely to customers in the Canadian region. 

Statista (2022) states the Canadian e-commerce platforms market is expected to generate staggering revenues of $75.6 billion in 2023, with the market showing adequate growth of 11.8% (CAGR 2023-2027) through 2027, to reach annual revenues of $118.2 billion by 2027.