During the last week of November, when retailers attracted buyers with big discounts, Estonians, Latvians and Lithuanians actively shopped in online stores. At the same time, the preferences of residents of all Baltic countries were similar: mainly household goods, electronics, coffee and products from Chinese online stores were purchased.
“Compared to usual November days, the total volume of shipments in the Baltics increased by several dozen percent during the discount campaigns. Almost half a million shipments were registered in the Baltics in the last week of November,” said Martten Kaldvee, Head of Sales of Venipak Estonia.
Paysera, a company that processes payments for about 13,000 online stores, reported that during the Black Friday weekend, buyers spent 9% more in online stores than on usual days in November.
According to Paysera, 78% of purchases in the Baltics during the campaign week were paid via online banking, while card payments, which dominate in Western Europe, accounted for only 5% of all purchases in the Baltics.
According to Kaldvee, more and more shoppers are choosing parcel machines to receive their shipments. “This is a trend that has been intensifying since 2021. According to the Venipak study, women, 18-39 year olds, higher-income residents of larger cities, and parents of young children are more likely to choose parcel machines for delivery. “The ability to flexibly receive parcels during your daily journey is a big advantage compared to waiting for a courier at home at a specific time,” he said.
Kaldvee also stressed the importance of planning holiday shopping early. “If Christmas shopping is left to the last minute, shoppers should pay attention to retailers’ delivery deadlines. Smooth delivery depends not only on the courier company, but also on the planning of purchases and the role of online stores in preparing parcels for delivery to the courier.”
Venipak has been operating on the Estonian market since 2011 and the company operates over 160 parcel lockers in Estonia.