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Trade: Romanians are Europeans with most online purchases abroad
Eight out of ten Romanians (81%),prefer to buy online to save time, over the EU average, while 70% say they purchased from abroad on the Internet, at least once, according to a barometer made by a courrier company from the local market.
At general level, more than half of Romanian e-shoppers (54%) are responsible for 90% of all electronic purchases made last year in EU, with an average of 14.7 online purchases.
According to the Geopost study, most common European e-shoppers prefer to buy online to save time (81% compared to EU average of 76%) or to avoid the stress of store shopping (71% vs EU 66%).
Customers from Romania prefer to have free delivery (36% vs EU 41%) and to have a detailed description of the goods purchased (25% vs EU 23%). Compared to other EU shppers, a Romanian out of five (21%) still prefers to pay cash on delivery, a thing less important in EU (7%).
At the same time, for 65% of Romanian respondents, as for the rest of Europeans buying online means saving, first of all. Thus, 80% are looking for the best offers (EU 69%), 65% are looking for discounts (EU 53%), while for 70% the price is the most important factor in making purchase decisions (EU 62%). A share of 49% are willing to pay more for sustainable products, compared to the EU average of 39%.
Asked how they choose the store for online purchases, Romanian e-shoppers mentioned sites they trust (56%, EU average 58%) but also count of recommendations from friends or relatives (40%, EU 34%) or react to paid social media ads (33%, EU 20%).
The top of preferred products includes: Fashion (63%, EU 58%), Beauty/Health care (60%, EU 48%) and Footwear (57%, EU 51%). The top is completed by Medicine (43%, EU 33%), on the rise by 8% against 2021, Books (41%, EU 44%) and Decorations (34%, EU 29%).
At the opposite pole, the biggest drop in online buyers' preferences from Romania was for Electronic appliances (33%, EU 28%) - by 6% versus 2022 and 11% below 2021.Jewelry, a category which drops by 5% against the previous year and by 31% of preferences it gets out of Top 10.
As for second hand products, 31% of monthly online ourchases are made by Romanian customers, compared to 35% the EU average. Data show that 61% of Romanian e-shoppers (EU 72%) are already present in the market as sellers or buyers.
For the cchapter product returns, the study shows that Romanians use this method less than they did two years ago (11%, 8% less than in 2021, for an EU average of 14%). When they return products, most Romanians prefer to call the courrier at home (53% vs EU 23%), at DPD offices( 18% vs EU 34%) or lockers (15% vs EU 20%).
At the same time Romanians are among the Europeans who make most online purchases from abroad, while 70% of them have bought at least once from abroad, the EU average being 58%. Over three quarters of respondents (77%) prefer European sites as well as online shops from neighbor countries (15% of Romanians). The top includes China (51%, EU 48%), Germany (36%, EU 28%) and Great Britain (26%, EU 24%).
Another interesting aspect refers to the fact that Romanian e-shoppers are among the most active in Europe on social media, 90% of those having an account on such a netowork using it for electronic trade (EU average 70%). Of them, 68% buy directly from social media (EU 48%), 41% find inspiration for purchases in social media (EU 28%), as well as in getting information for e-shopping (EU 26%).
e-shopper barometer was made based on methodology including 24,000 interviews made in 22 countries by Geopost experts.
DPD Romanian courrier company is part of Geopost, a European leader in road deliveries and has been active in the local market since 2008.