By Christine Persaud
PayPal is now available as a new payment option on Walmart.ca to accommodate the greater amount of purchases Canadians are making online for groceries and other essentials due to the current COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
A survey commissioned by PayPal in early April shows that 30% of Canadians are shopping online for groceries, marking a 58% jump from a comparable survey conducted just four weeks earlier, before the coronavirus was declared a global pandemic.
Canadian consumers had already embraced online shopping before the pandemic, as 95% reported in early March that they had made an online purchase. Before the health crisis, online grocery shopping was less popular, with only 19% reporting engaging in the activity at the time. Now, the most recent survey shows close to one in three Canadians surveyed (30%) are shopping online to buy groceries. That survey also found that since the outbreak, more Canadians have started to shop online for essential items like household supplies (41% increase) and toiletries (33% increase), as well as other items like entertainment, toys and games (18% increase).
The new research findings seem to mark a substantial shift in Canadians’ shopping behaviours. When asked if their online shopping habits would change in the coming months, the vast majority of respondents (81%) said they anticipate shopping online the same amount or more, and 44% said they expect to increase their online shopping.
“In the current climate, we understand that shopping online for groceries and other everyday essentials is the need of the hour,” says Paul Parisi, PayPal Canada President. “We are delighted to announce that now more than seven million active PayPal users across the country can use their digital wallet to shop online at Walmart.”
“We are proud to be the first Canadian retailer that sells groceries to offer PayPal, making online shopping more accessible for more Canadians,” adds Alexis Lanternier, Executive Vice President of eCommerce for Walmart Canada. “PayPal has a long-standing reputation as a safe and trusted payment provider and together, we’re helping Canadians shop for the products they need right now.”
The most recent survey found that among Canadian respondents who don’t shop online, 39% are worried about putting their financial information on the Internet. Walmart has chosen to include PayPal into their online checkout to help put shoppers at ease as the payment platform doesn’t share personal financial details with third parties.
Canadians can pay for their purchase with their bank account, Visa Debit card, or credit card linked to their PayPal account while earning their card-associated reward points. Opening an account is free and customers are not charged a fee when making purchases.
The findings include results of two surveys executed by Edelman through the Angus Reid Forum, the first taking place between March 3rd and 4th, and the second between April 1st and 2nd, 2020. The surveys were each conducted in English and French and included nationally representative samples of Canadians (1,562 and 1,503 respectively) who are members of the Angus Reid consumer panel.