SMALL businesses in East Lancashire are putting London in the shade when it comes to internet sales.

Lancashire has the second-highest concentration of small e-retail sellers – with London down in 26th spot.

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Reports from eBay show that Greater Manchester has the greatest concentration, followed by Lancashire and West Yorkshire, revealing a new ‘Northern Powerhouse’ of e-commerce.

These businesses range from ‘homepreneurs’ to fast-growing businesses like Thingimijigs, which started with just an eBay account, £200 and a kitchen table.

The firm now sells branded gifts and accessories for children across the world from a purpose-built facility in Burnley and labels itself as “the one-stop shop for busy mums”.

Rachael White, co-owner with her husband of Burnley’s Thingimijigs, said: “We sell across Europe and the world. This is a source of great pride for us because we were very much made in Burnley.

“Now we have a turnover of over £1.3 million per year.

“In the last 12 months, 46 per cent of our parcels have gone to Europe as we’ve enjoyed notable demand for our products in Germany, France and Austria.”

The Daisy Group was founded in 2001 with a handful of staff by founder and executive chairman Matthew Riley and it is now one of the UK’s leading independent business communication providers.

Kate O’Brien, marketing director, said: “Many of the barriers that have traditionally discouraged people from starting a business, such as geography or property costs, no longer apply.

“If you have an internet connection, you can start a digital business, and in the North West, there’s no shortage of people encouraging you to join the digital revolution.

“There is a huge ongoing demand for technology and products that can make our lives easier so if you have an idea and the skills to develop new technology, it can easily be turned into a business.

“For those without a broad digital skill-set, there is now an array of software tools and services now available to help people set up an e-commerce business.”

More than half of small online retail businesses in the UK are global – exporting to four or more different continents.

Sarah Calcott, director of operations at eBay UK, said: “Our technology is breaking down barriers to global markets by allowing small businesses access to products and services that were once the preserve of large firms, such as smart shipping, international payments and translation, and using our global market to access millions of potential customers.”