Business is booming for Russia’s online retail stores

In 2013, Russia’s online retail stores showed an outstanding growth rate of 26 percent, reports RegioData Research. That growth accounts for approximately 14 billion USD, a large sum of money by any standards.

While the Russian online sector is still only pulling in about one quarter of Germany’s numbers, the two markets have very different niches. In Germany, the majority of online sales are for home delivery products and services, while Russian consumers prefer click and connect shopping where they buy products online and go to the store to pick them up.

Many companies are embracing the online retail world as an efficient way of doing business. A recent addition to Russia’s online marketplace is the new Top Secret’s store, launched by Polish Redan Group in June. The early sales results have been promising, with many customers from across the country placing orders.

 

Redan Group spent several months in preparation for the online store launch. The company’s structure was changed to meet the new demands, and a new e-warehouse was built to allow for quick and efficient delivery across the country.

Although the e-store is in full service mode, it is still being tweaked to meet the needs of the Russian market. Currently, not all in store products are available online, but are expected to be added shortly. The company will also be stepping up marketing to promote the online store. There are already other fashion stores present in Russia’s online marketplace, making the competition steep.

Many local companies are starting to see the benefits of e-commerce and are vying to provide quality services and products to the local market. While the international competition is tough, local companies are in a better position to meet their customer’s needs. The major hurdle to be overcome with online business is shipping, as the country’s geography and infrastructure presents a challenge.

There are many issues with shipping for foreign and local competitors. The Russian post has famously poor service. The shipping companies such as DHL and FedEx also announced this year that they will no longer deliver foreign parcels to private homes. This decision was based primarily on the new stricter import restrictions in Russia for online store purchases.