The Fashion Outlet

Fashion is eBay’s most successful category and the appointment of Miriam Lahage as European General Manager of Fashion is part of its ambitious plans to further boost the category, which already has 4.1m unique visitors per month

eBay launched its UK Fashion Outlet in April 2010. The Outlet offers customers the best deals and discounts on new, branded goods (up to 70% off) and allows the brands to access the site’s 90 million global active users.

The fashion Outlet now hosts over 30 high street brands, including Superdry, Ted Baker, House of Fraser, Schuh, Dune, Office and Kookai.

Mobile

Mobile commerce is taking off, with the industry growing at a rate of 400% year on year in the UK. eBay research has shown that the UK has been the fastest adopter of mobile commerce, with more Brits shopping through the eBay app than anywhere else in Europe. Consumers are increasingly using their smartphones for everything from price comparison, to trying on clothes in virtual changing rooms, to making the final transaction.

Currently more than 15 million people use their iPhones to shop using an eBay app, an item is purchased every 2 seconds using the eBay app, and eBay mobile applications are available in more than 190 countries and eight languages. In 2010 global eBay sales via a mobile more than tripled, generating $2 billion in sales (up from $600m in 2009), and this is set to double to $4 billion in 2011.

Enabling Entrepreneurs

Alongside our commitment to offering great value and selection, eBay is the number one site for online entrepreneurs – big and small – with over 160,000 businesses registered on the UK site.

In 2010, despite a climate of continuing economic uncertainty and fears of a double dip recession, the number of million pound businesses operating on the site doubled, proving that if you’ve got the right product and offer great customer service, then the recession and minimal start-up funds are no barrier to growing a successful business.

With such a large volume of online businesses operating on the site, eBay launched the Europe-wide Online Business Index in 2009 in order to track the success and attitudes of online retailers. It allows eBay to better support and campaign on behalf of small businesses on the issues that matter to them.

In November 2010, for example, eBay submitted a report as evidence to the Independent Banking Commission on behalf of the 160,000 businesses trading on the site as our Online Business Index told us that SMEs were still not getting adequate support from the UK banking industry, despite renewed promises of increasing lending levels.

Getting in touch

The eBay Business centre provides lots of information and advice for prospective or existing eBay businesses including legal and policy advice for start-ups, as well as tools and services to help ensure people are using the online platform effectively and efficiently.

Two other great hubs of interactivity include the eBay community boards - accessed through the eBay.co.uk website, and The Online Business Forum which is hosted on the business networking site LinkedIn. Both are excellent sources of peer-to-peer help and advice. The eBay community boards are a popular place to learn useful eBay tips, or to discuss issues and find ways of improving your business with other eBay users. The more recently established Online Business Forum is a social business network, supported by eBay but independently managed by e-commerce expert, and author of the bestselling guide to Make Serious Money on eBay UK, Dan Wilson. It is designed to provide an additional resource for businesses and spans a wide range of relevant topics in relation to e-commerce and SMEs. It also regularly plays host to business experts who offer advice to members via web-chats. To join this group, just search for ‘The Online Business Forum powered by eBay’ on LinkedIn.

You can also follow eBay on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ebay_uk or www.twitter.com/eBay_life4less.

Financials

Information on eBay financial releases and financial history can be found on the eBay Inc. Investor Relations website.