GPeC report: Romanians spent €3.5BN online in 2018, 30% more compared to 2018

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According to GPeC statistics and estimates, together with those provided by the main Romanian e-commerce players (please find all the sources mentioned at the end of the article), the value of the online shopping industry exceeded €3,5 billion euros in 2018, up 30% compared to 2017 *(€2,8BN). The data regarding the value of the Romanian e-tail spending in 2018 is included in a report available online (in English) 

The mentioned amount only represents the e-tail (tangible products that were bought over the Internet) and does not include services, air tickets, holidays and travels, hotel bookings, tickets to shows or events, downloadable content etc.

GPeC and ARMO (The Romanian Online Shops Association) estimate that the Romanian e-commerce market will reach and probably exceed the 5-billion-euro threshold in 2020.

In 2018, Romanians spent, on average, 243 RON on Desktop online purchases and 210 RON on Mobile orders, according to 2Performant. 80% of the online shops’ traffic is generated by mobile phones, up 10% compared to 2017 and 30% over 2016.

According to 2Performant statistics, Romanians buy certain types of products mainly on mobile phones. For example, 78,5% of transaction of online shops selling children’s items are made on the mobile phone and only 21,5% on Desktop. Also, 66% of Fashion items are purchased on mobile phones, as well as 63,2% Cosmetics and Beauty products. As for electronics, home appliances and IT products, Romanians still prefer the Desktop (57,3%) at the expense of mobile (42,7%), although the percentages are relatively close. The same applies to adult products(56% Desktop vs. 44% Mobile).

According to a GPeC and iSense Solutions’ study, the main categories of products sold online in 2018 were, in order (depending on purchasing frequency): Electro-IT&C, Fashion & Beauty, Travel, Home furnishings & Decorations, Books, Tickets to shows and concerts, Auto & Moto and Children’s products .

According to INS, the 16-34 age segment is the most active online shopping category, accounting for 52,3% of all online buyers. In addition, a Kantar Millward Brown study shows that 38% of Romanians have made online purchases at least once in the last 12 months, placing Romania ahead other countries like Greece and Portugal (36%), Italy (34) %), Croatia (29%) or Bulgaria (26%).

GPeC is the most important eCommerce event and the largest online shops community in Romania. Following its 14-year tradition, GPeC represents today the perfect mix of Conferences, Workshops, Expo, Intensive Trainings and Courses, Statistics, Community and Online Shops Competition, with the particular role of contributing to the development of the e-commerce market. Online registrations are now open for the 2019 GPeC Competition and GPeC SUMMIT May 27-28, 2019, with a 50% discount on the participation fee with the Early Adoption Offer, valid until January 31, 2019. For details and registration, visit the GPeC website.