Now that buying online has become second nature to a growing percentage of UK shoppers, retailers across the UK are struggling to keep pace with the innovation in online and multi channel shopping.

We’ve just started working with technology business AIMES Grid Services to advise bu

We have conducted research into North West retail businesses with turnovers of between £1million and £5million and how they are competing online.  These are the companies that should see maybe local store offerings transformed by national reach online. In the North West alone, we estimate there are circa 400 of these mid-range retailers who are missing out on the increased sales which transacting online could bring.

Importantly what is the potential lost revenue from this?  As a starting point, most of these retailers should be capable of generating an extra 10 per cent of sales by moving into transacting online. Again we conservatively estimate that collectively they are missing out on £40million a year in lost revenue.

You can safely add a nought onto that figure to give you the national picture – and all because retailers have been unable to justify the cost or do not have the in-house expertise to set up an e-tail platform.

But innovation and technological advances mean that businesses who couldn’t afford to start selling online just a year or so ago can find a solution which will help them compete.  Cloud computing and next generation, energy efficient digital architecture means that there are new cost-effective ways to replicate and even improve on the services offered by traditional software providers.  Set up and running costs can now be up to 50 per cent lower than traditional solutions – and some proactive universities now offer two-year subsidised secondments, providing you with the manpower to roll out your e-tail site.