Letzshop, the local shop that's just a click away Since the start of the pandemic, Letzshop has recorded a 1,434% increase in orders

A warm welcome awaits you in this stylish shop dedicated to the world of tea on the rue Notre-Dame in Luxembourg city. For 20 years, Josée Letsch, supported by her three employees, has given pride of place to teas from the four corner of the globe. White tea, green tea, yellow tea, black and oolong teas as well as plain or flavoured teas, herbal teas, fruit infusions, rooibos and honeybush, and so much more. It goes without saying, there is a large and diverse range of teas on offer.

But, not so long ago, things started to turn sour for Josée Letsch. Her shop (TeeGschwendner), which is well established, was suffering from the effects of the health crisis. Due to the pandemic, she could no longer welcome her customers in her shop. Fortunately, in 2018, she had the good sense to join the Letzshop platform, the marketplace for local retailers. A choice which she didn't regret; in fact, it was her saving grace. Since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, her orders have risen sharply. "With the onset of the pandemic, my orders increased rapidly. On top of our existing customers, we added new customers. We went from three order per week to 75 per week!", she revealed during a recent interview. 

Maggy Fantini, the beginning of a new chapter The owner of the Promoculture bookshop, was, in her own words, more or less born with a book in her hands. Her business also witnessed a change in customer habits and an increase in online sales during the health crisis.  "The book ‘Aläert, jauwen, Zockerboun – 123 Pärelen aus der Lëtzebuerger Sprooch’ sold close to 200 copies", she declares proudly. Moreover, she points out that her business posted a 5% increase in sales since she registered on Letzshop. 

e-commerce, the real winner

Everything seemed to go well for retailers on Letzshop during the pandemic. While brick-and-mortar stores were forced to close during lockdown, the platform gave them the opportunity to continue selling goods via the electronic platform. And the outcome is highly impressive. Retailers and shoppers immediately flocked to Letzshop; the number of orders rose sharply and sales soared.

Online sales growth on Letzshop reached levels not seen since its launch in 2018, as evidenced by the figures. Since the start of the crisis, the website recorded a 1,434% increase in orders in 2020 as compared to 2019. Last year, turnover rose 803% compared to 2019 for local shops.

Promoting local business

For the beekeeper, Yannick Kihm, better known as Beiefritz, the health crisis proved to be the ideal opportunity to give his online sales a boost. He has been a member of the Letzshop since 2019 and his sales have been buzzing since the start of the health crisis in March 2020. "At the start of the pandemic, my client numbers were increasing", he stated. "At the moment, they are falling, however, they are still better than when I first signed up to Letzshop".

He has a highly positive impression of the Luxembourg marketplace. "The structure of the website is highly intuitive, you can find all sorts of items and have them delivered to your doorstep". But the biggest asset of the website is evident - it supports and promotes the local economy, says the beekeeper. Letzshop offers a wide range of products and the goods on offer are growing by the day. In total, the website has 387,870 products online, of which 2,270 products are "made in Luxembourg" by 72 local retailers. 

A prosperous beginning

In total, the website hosts 500 retailers and their range of goods. From the point of view of the managers of Letzshop, they remain confident about the development potential of the platform. And for good reason, Letzshop is barely three years old and its success is already outstanding.

This impression is shared by the retailers on the website. In their eyes, there are numerous advantages to be gained by this platform. It offers a virtual window with high levels of exposure and the service provided by the supplier is second to none!

At present, it's a case of inspiring others. Josée Letsch, who does not have her own website for her tea shop, urges other retailers to knock on Letzshop's door in order to give their products a boost. Initiations go hand-in-hand with the ambitions of the platform's coordinators, who want to help local retailers incorporate e-commerce into their daily lives, so that they can continue to offer consumers access to strong and prosperous local businesses.

In this win-win relationship, retailers are not paying subscription fees at the moment due to the unprecedented situation created by the health crisis "Having a shop window on Letzshop offers me a high level of customer exposure. You have to take advantage of this opportunity. In my case, it's profitable", Josée Letsch concedes, adding that running her own website would be much more expensive.

Obviously, a presence on Letzshop is priceless!