STOCKHOLM, Sweden — Klarna which has become increasingly identified as the preferred ‘buy now, pay later’ provider — has seen a surge in merchant demand for its services and is now powering over 190,000 merchants globally.
“Bringing smoooth shopping to consumers across the world, wouldn’t be possible without the thousands of merchants who put their trust in our vision to simplify shopping. We know that customers love the flexibility and convenience that comes with our products and by delivering the best possible experience to them, we’ve been able to partner with some remarkable brands and retailers across markets. As we continue to expand our offering across different verticals and touchpoints, I’m incredibly proud of the momentum we’ve managed to achieve since the start of the year,” says Luke Griffiths, Global commercial lead at Klarna.
In 2019 to date, Klarna has added over 60,000 new merchants and each day is helping them increase consumer acquisition, average order value, conversion and retention. The number of new merchants increased by 140% globally in 2019, compared to the full year of 2018 with strong growth in newer verticals including travel, home and beauty.
Merchants who are offering the four interest-free instalments in the US are reporting a 68% increase in average order value, a 44% increase in conversion compared to cards and 21% higher purchase frequency.
Global brands across verticals that are now live with Klarna include H&M, River Island, Boohoo, Made.com, Abercrombie & Fitch, Timberland, Swarovski, S by Serena Williams, ACNE studios, Lulus, Romwe, Michael Kors, Wayfair, Expedia Group, Shein and joining the likes of ASOS, IKEA, Peloton, Ticketmaster, Adidas, Nike, Sephora, Missguided, Beauty Bay, Samsung, Gymshark, Bose and Superdry.
By the end of October, more than 16 million new consumers were welcomed — with some markets seeing an average of over 70% of consumers make multiple repeat transactions over a 12 months period. In the US, the number of new consumers is currently growing at an annual rate of 6 million. In the UK, 6 million consumers have used Klarna’s services, and currently over 55,000 new consumers are being added weekly. The company is driving millions of referrals and traffic each month from owned channels to its merchants, as consumers are actively seeking out retailers where they can shop with Klarna.
Klarna’s new direct to consumer shopping app, active users has grown significantly, increasing by almost 160% from July until the end of September, and with approximately 70% of consumers making repeat purchases using Klarna’s in-app shopping feature. The direct to consumer offering alone is growing at a current annualised rate of almost 4.5 million transactions in the US, and in October the Klarna app became the number 1 trending shopping app on the US Google Play Store. The Klarna app is by far the most downloaded app compared to direct competitors in the US, exceeding other apps by more than 100,000 monthly downloads.
There are now 10,000 stores live with Klarna’s in-store solutions, including H&M, Samsung, Schuh, Halfords, Dish, Peloton, Saatva, OnePlus, iSmash, Thai Airways, Gina Tricot and XXL and global in-store volumes have increased by over 90% since the beginning of the year.
“Retail is undergoing a radical shift driven by consumers who are expecting more transparency, flexibility as well as intuitive services centred around their needs when shopping. Klarna now has over 190,000 merchant partners globally who are understanding that in order to be competitive and build loyalty, they need to think of the end to end shopping experience for the consumer rather than just a transaction. Klarna’s trajectory is a result of a relentless focus that the future of retail consists of a high touch experience which will not only drive engagement and reach, but also build customer preference.” says Sebastian Siemiatkowski, founder and CEO at Klarna.
Klarna’s brand continues to grow in stature and awareness has been significantly boosted by a series of campaigns, which is fuelling consumer and merchant demand. In a little under one year, Klarna created over 1 billion total impressions, powered by partnerships with Snoop Dogg and comedian Celeste Barber, as well as campaigns celebrating Klarna’s personalised shopping experience, including “Shop Like a Queen” and the football fan focused “VAR” campaign. The “Shop like a Queen” campaign alone generated more than half a million app downloads in the US within two months.
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