evoMAG: The domestic IT&C e-tail market, up 10 pct at three months in 2014

Romania’s online retail market has seen a 10 percent advance in the IT&C segment in the first three months of the year, coming to approximately 90 – 100 million euro, as per evoMAG.ro’s estimations.  The growth rate is less accelerated compared to last years, yet the next period will bring some positive changes, the industry expecting a revival during Easter time.

”We anticipate an upsurge in sales which will grow in the very next period by about 20 percent compared to regular periods throughout the year, due to higher demand among consumers”, says Mihai Patrascu, CEO evoMAG.ro, further explaining that apart from an auspicious shopping time during which people are likely to spend more than usually, the upturn in sales is also supported through special offers and major discounts, incentivizing spendings.

Top choices for Romanians remain smartphones, tablets, laptops and TVs, with the first two categories in leading positions. According to evoMAG.ro,  the mobile phones market could record an increase by maximum 40 percent in 2014 on depreciation.

However, the progress of this niche is enhanced by the countinuous technological development, new products being launched on a constant basis, as explained by Patrascu: ”Another factor supporting the development of this segment is related to the growing number of product launches  from manufacturers. We are talking about major manufacturers: Samsung, Apple, Sony, LG that are constantly announcing new launches of products, but also about the development of companies in the B category, especially Romanian companies which have products increasingly better, incorporating new technologies in the equipments they bring in the market, also offering lower prices.”

For the current year, evoMAG foresees a turnover exceeding 20 million euro, an improvement by 30 percent over 2013, above the average growth rate recorded last year in online commerce – some 25 percent. The IT&C sector accounts for some 70 percent of the e-commerce market, as Marius Ghenea, President of ARMO – the Romanian Association of E-Commerce, explained during a Govnet Conferences’ event held in March.

Last year, Romanians spent  about 1 billion euro online, the amount reflecting expenditures on both goods and services.  Compared to a report related to 2012 published by Ecommerce Europe, there was an improvement by 25 percent, since the respective results showed that Romanians transferred 800 million euro in e-tailers’ accounts.