shopping onlineMatt Cardy / Stringer / Getty Images
Online shopping is becoming more commonplace, and several heavyweights have climbed to the top of the list to become the household names in e-commerce.
Of course, this has not stopped other competitors from carving out their own niches and trying to become the go-to destinations when consumers want to shop online.
Internet Retailer has compiled aHot 100 list of e-commerce companies based on their business models, and each is uniquely positioned to thrive as consumers funnel more dollars into online shopping.
Unsurprisingly, Amazon is the first name on the list. The company is THE e-commerce juggernaut with more than 109 million unique visitors and millions of products for sale. But Amazon's success comes not from resting on its laurels, but from continued innovation and experimentation.
Last year, Amazon started Prime Day, a one-day sale that resulted in the site's greatest sales day ever with 34.4 million items sold. Some sellers claimed their sales almost quardrupled that day, and one vendor claimed it sold $16,000 worth of products per hour.
Up next is Birchbox, a subscription-based service that sends customers a box of beauty and care products based on their personal profiles. The company, which has 2,250,000 unique visitors, also offers grooming tips in order to provide an incentive for shoppers to sign up and buy the products to execute those tips.
Third is Blue Apron, which ships fresh ingredients directly to customers' doors for them to cook at home. The company, founded in 2011, boasts more than 1,700,000 unique visitors with approximately 5 million meals shipped per month. CEO and founder Matt Salzberg has said more than three million pounds of produce was grown specifically for Blue Apron this season.
Fourth is Boll & Branch, which offers luxury sheets, towels, and throws made from organic and hand-picked cotton at a reduced price from other major retailers. Founders Missy and Scott Tannen launched the site in 2014, which makes the company the youngest on the list.
The two also opened a facility that pays fair wages and refuses to use child labor. Furthermore, a portion of each sale goes to the organization Not For Sale, which combats slavery and human trafficking around the world.
Finally, we have E-closet, a Brazil-based company launched in 2008. E-closet was one of the first e-retailers to devise a way to get shoppers to buy luxury fashion items online. And in the face of increasing competition, the company adjusted by adding children's clothing and mildly used vintage designer goods, along with a private label accessories line. The company innovated even further by launching same-day delivery for shoppers within São Paulo.