Online commerce in Switzerland continues to thrive, but not without posing challenges to Swiss companies. Of the more than 15.8 billion Swiss francs in revenue generated by 2025, nearly 2.8 billion comes from large foreign retailers like Amazon or Chinese players (an increase of 8%). Swiss consumers, despite their strong purchasing power, are increasingly attracted to these platforms with competitive prices.
To learn more about the success factors of these foreign players in Switzerland, let's analyze the five largest foreign companies that have achieved lasting success in the Swiss market in recent years. Here is the top 50 established by the Swiss Retail Association if you wish to go directly to the data.
Zalando, the Swiss' Favorite Fashion Site
In just a few years, Zalando has become an essential player for Swiss consumers looking for clothing, shoes, and accessories online. It was only in 2025 that Zalando moved from first to second place, behind Galaxus. Number one in B2C ecommerce in Switzerland for many years, Zalando has achieved exceptional revenues: 1.65 billion euros in 2024, 1.65 billion euros in 2023, and more (source: Carpathia).
Zalando's Success Criteria
- Free delivery and returns
- No minimum purchase amount
- A significant reduction in the risk associated with buying clothes without trying them on
- Strong marketing capabilities
This policy of unlimited free returns, a pioneering approach at the time, has become Zalando's trademark. It has attracted many Swiss consumers and influenced the Swiss market.
Amazon – (Re-)Conquers Switzerland
- integrating VAT at the time of order, thus avoiding unpleasant surprises during customs clearance
- improving the cross-border logistics
- using distribution centers close to the border
- collaborating with La Poste for delivery
And it works! By the end of 2024, Amazon held a market share of 10.5% in terms of awareness among Swiss online shoppers.
What are the Reasons for Amazon's Success in Switzerland?
Amazon attracts Swiss consumers with competitive prices and a wide range of products. In 2022, Amazon.de generated 850 million Swiss francs in revenue in Switzerland, despite the absence of a local website. (Source: La Côte, RTS.)
To adapt to the market, Amazon offers:
- Fast delivery from Germany, usually within two to four days
- An interface in French, German, and English
- Prices displayed in CHF
- Import fees calculated automatically
- Simplified returns via local collection points
According to Handelsverband.swiss, logistical partnerships with Swiss Post even allow for deliveries within 24 hours (standard: 3 to 5 business days; express: 1 to 3 business days).
At the same time, Swiss e-commerce reached 14.4 billion CHF in 2023, an increase of 3%, thus confirming Amazon's strong potential.
The arrival of Amazon Prime and its complementary services, including Kindle and Audible, represents a tremendous marketing lever for streaming enthusiasts. Moreover, the brand certainly does not need to be introduced, which further facilitates its expansion.
AliExpress (Alibaba Group) – The Chinese eCommerce Platform that has Won over the Swiss
With about 1.5% market share in terms of awareness, AliExpress ranks among the 10 most visited online marketplaces.
Reasons for AliExpress's Success
The success of AliExpress is based on:
- Low prices
- A very vast product catalog
- Zero or minimal shipping fees, despite relatively low product prices
China has been able to take advantage of very favorable international postal agreements, thus encouraging impulsive micro-purchases by Swiss customers.
Around 2016–2017, faced with the explosion in parcel volume, Swiss Post had to adapt by automating the customs clearance of small shipments and managing this increased volume.
Starting January 1, 2025, Swiss authorities modified the VAT law to tax small orders.
Despite fierce competition from other new Chinese platforms such as Wish and Shein, and more recently Temu, launched in 2023, AliExpress continued to gain popularity, partly due to the 2020 pandemic.
Temu, a Chinese Platform already Propelled to the Top of the Rankings
Despite its late arrival in the Swiss market, Temu ranks among the top five online retailers in 2026, according to an article from Swissinfo.
Like other Chinese platforms, Temu offers low-priced products, gadgets, clothing, and accessories. However, Temu has adopted a more aggressive business strategy, often offering prices lower than its competitors.
The strengths of Temu
- A more playful interface
- Frequent promotions and rewards to encourage purchases
- A playful user experience
- Optimized logistics
- Direct shipments from China, thus reducing intermediaries and costs
- VAT included to comply with Swiss regulations
- Free shipping offers
This approach has allowed Temu to catch up and quickly increase its presence in the Swiss market.
IKEA, the highly regarded Swedish furniture brand
Established in Switzerland since 1973, IKEA generates an annual revenue of about 1.2 billion dollars, with over 13.85 million visitors and 28% of its sales made online. Thanks to its customer assembly concept and low prices, IKEA brings a significant amount of innovation to the market.
This approach offers many advantages in terms of transportation and logistics. IKEA stands out even more with its omnichannel model. And yet, knowing that you have to assemble the furniture yourself, a little DIY video is never too much.
What are Ikea's Success Factors?
It is this same omnichannel approach that allows IKEA to offer its customers a seamless, even impeccable experience.
Its other major asset lies in its affordable prices. Furthermore, IKEA has invested over 2.1 billion euros in 2024 to support consumers during this difficult economic period.
This investment has resulted in:
- An increase of over 3% in in-store traffic
- An increase of 28% in online traffic
- An increase of 9% in online orders
Its commitment to sustainable development, its ecological initiatives, and its social responsibility have continued to strengthen the loyalty of Swiss and European customers.
Successful large Swiss companies rely on two models
- Attractive offers featuring quality products at low prices: IKEA Switzerland achieved a revenue of 1.283 billion Swiss francs in 2023, an increase of 10.2% compared to the previous year. The share of online sales reached 25.7%, up from 23.3% the previous year. IKEA also lowered the prices of 800 products to make its items more affordable.
- Chinese platforms with unbeatable prices: Temu, a Chinese e-commerce platform, experienced rapid growth in Switzerland in 2023 by offering a wide range of products at competitive prices. This strategy attracted many Swiss consumers looking for good deals.
Zalando: although its free return policy has been questioned by some retailers, Zalando continues to offer free returns in Switzerland. This policy has helped build customer loyalty in Switzerland, despite a general trend towards reducing free returns in the sector.
Emaloja is recognized as one of the best Swiss companies for European expansion and/or for the development of e-commerce activities in Switzerland.