GLOBAL INSIGHT REPORT: What Cross-Border Shoppers Actually Want in 2026, and Whether You’re Ready to Deliver It

Introducing our new global insight report which draws on data from 12 countries across Europe, North America and Australia. 

Here’s what stood out, and why it matters for your cross-border strategy.

Cross-border ecommerce has quietly crossed a threshold. The question for most international retailers is no longer whether to sell abroad. It’s whether their operations can actually sustain growth once they get there.

This is the premise behind The e-seller’s guide to cross-border growth, our new global insight report spanning 12 destination markets: Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, the UK, Switzerland, the US, Canada and Australia.

The report at a glance:

Structural shifts you may be underestimating. None of these macro-level trends are entirely new, but the pace and scale may surprise you.

Markets are becoming more open. Cross-border participation has hit significant levels in most mature ecommerce markets, and in some countries the numbers are striking. Carts are getting bigger too, with average order values rising consistently across markets , which has direct implications for how you handle fulfilment.

The third shift may be the most important one: the domestic/ international distinction is disappearing. Download the report to see what consumers now expect from international delivery, and whether most retailers are actually meeting that bar.

What do shoppers universally expect?

Across all 12 markets, the report identifies consumer expectations that show up consistently regardless of country or product category. Cost transparency, delivery reliability, returns simplicity, mobile optimisation: the data on each of these is more specific, and in some cases more uncomfortable, than you might expect.

Nearly a third of shoppers in one major market abandon checkout for a reason that's entirely preventable. Find out which market and what's driving it in the report.

Any regional patterns worth knowing?

Yes, and they're actionable. The report surfaces clear behavioural clusters across Anglo-Saxon markets, Western and Southern Europe, and Northern and Central Europe — each with distinct priorities around speed, returns, carrier trust and cost communication with direct implications for how you configure your delivery options by market. 

The bottom line

Logistics has become a brand variable and e-logistics even more so. The retailers who will grow cross-border in 2026 are those who treat delivery performance, returns management and customs handling as direct contributors to conversion, trust and loyalty and not just backend afterthoughts.

The full report goes considerably deeper, with country-level data, parcel economics by size, weight and category, as well as detailed factsheets on Belgium, the US and Canada, three of Landmark Global's key destination markets.