Sourcing by Italian SMEs: 86% domestic, but non-EU rises to 22%

MONDAY, 5 OCTOBER 2026

Geopost's Business Barometer 2026: Italian SMEs buy more in Italy and also outside Europe. And they choose suppliers for delivery before price.

Sourcing by Italian SMEs is moving in two directions at once: 86% of small and medium-sized companies buy from domestic suppliers, 14 points more than in 2024, but the share buying outside the European Union also rises, to 22%, ten points more. That is the finding of Geopost's Business Barometer 2026, from the group that includes BRT, which surveyed 3,600 SMEs in 21 European countries and six sectors. The Italian figure goes against the European trend, where the prevailing response is shortening supply chains.

The Business Barometer 2026 figures

The survey measures the share of companies using each supply channel, not the volumes purchased: a company can buy in Italy and outside the EU at the same time, which is why the percentages add up to more than one hundred. The comparison with the European average, however, says a lot about how Italian SMEs are reacting to uncertainty.

• Domestic suppliers: used by 86% of Italian SMEs, +14 points on 2024; European average 84%.
• Non-EU suppliers: used by 22% of Italian SMEs, +10 points; European average 17%.
• First criterion in choosing a supplier: delivery reliability for 43% of Italian SMEs, ahead of price (36%) and quality (35%).
• Reduction of international supplies due to geopolitical tensions: 13% of Italian SMEs, against a European average of 20%.
• Choice of courier: 54% of Italian SMEs would like to choose it directly, but only 22% can.

Why sourcing by Italian SMEs goes against the trend

In Europe the prevailing response to geopolitical tensions has been to cut distant supplies: one company in five did so. In Italy the share stops at 13%, and meanwhile both domestic and non-EU purchases grow. The picture is of a hybrid model: strengthening nearby suppliers for current needs and continuing to buy far away where there is a cost or product advantage.

The survey does not explain the reasons for this choice, and the data does not show that Italian companies are more exposed or better prepared than others. It does signal that, for many SMEs, buying outside Europe remains a competitive lever they do not intend to give up.

Delivery before price

Perhaps the most interesting figure concerns selection criteria. In Europe price (51%) and quality (44%) matter most; Italian SMEs put delivery reliability first, at 43%. It is consistent with the growth of non-EU sourcing: the further away you source, the more the problem becomes time and punctuality, not just the factory price.

Linked to this is control over shipping. More than half of Italian SMEs would like to choose their courier, but just over one in five can: for the others, the choice of transport lies with someone else.

What it means for importers

For those buying outside the EU, the weak point identified by the survey is delivery, and it is worth acting precisely there. The first tool is the delivery term: buying ex works or free on board lets you choose the forwarder and service, while a delivered term leaves the choice to the supplier, along with control over times and costs.

The second is planning margin. On distant supplies it pays to build the schedule backwards from the date the goods are needed, including production, inspection, transit and customs clearance times, and to leave a buffer for delays, which are frequent on intercontinental services.

With La Merce, those among the 22% of SMEs buying outside the EU choose forwarder and service on free-on-board terms, because delivery reliability, named by 43% as the first criterion, can only be managed by controlling transport.

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