Among business buyers, millennials choose marketplaces nearly twice as often as baby boomers.


Compared with the generations of industrial buyers before them, millennials are opting to purchase products more often on business-to-business marketplaces.

In addition, millennials are more likely than older buyers to prefer purchasing industrial products and supplies on online marketplaces instead of directly from distributors or manufacturers, according to a new study released recently by shipping services company United Parcel Service of America Inc.

“The millennial generation might have the most profound impact on the future of industrial products buying than any other” generation, UPS says in “UPS Industrial Buying Dynamics Study: Buyers Raise the Bar for Suppliers.” UPS conducted the study earlier this year of 1,500 industrial buyers in the United States ranging in age from 21 to 70. It defines millennials as buyers aged from 21 to 34, Generation X buyers from 35 to 51, and baby boomers from 51 to 70.

The study, which UPS conducted with research firm Kantar TNS, found that buyers overall prefer buying directly from distributors than from marketplaces or manufacturers. Showing market share, it found that buyers overall did 45% of their purchases with distributors, 31% with manufacturers and 24% with online marketplaces.

But among millennials, the share of purchases going to online marketplaces was nearly twice that among baby boomers, 30% to 16%. Generation X buyers reported doing 25% of their purchases on marketplaces.

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Millennials in the survey said they did 37% of their purchasing with distributors and 33% with manufacturers, compared with 55% and 30% among boomers, and 44% and 31% among Gen Xers. (The combined percentages for boomers in the study totaled 101% because of rounding.)

The most common reasons given by all buyers in the study for choosing to purchase through online marketplaces was free shipping, cited by 36%, followed by price, 34%, quick response to an order, 32%; value, 31%; and reliable delivery, 30%.

The most common reasons from all buyers for purchasing directly from manufacturers: Price, cited by 37%; high-quality products, 34%; value, 30%; reliable delivery, 25%; and quick response to an order, 24%.

And the most common reasons from all buyers for purchasing directly from large distributors: Price, cited by 40%; high-quality products, 34%; value, 33%; wide selection, 29%; and reliable delivery, 26%.

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