The domestic e-commerce sector showed particular dynamics last year, with the value of sales exceeding 14 billion euros.
The total value of B2C e-commerce (products and services) for 2021 is estimated at 14 billion euros, according to a semi-annual survey conducted by the E-Commerce and Business Laboratory (ELTRUN) of the Athens University of Economics and Business in collaboration with the Association of Business and Retail Sales of Greece.
The survey of online consumer trends in retail (B2C e-commerce) was conducted in December 2021 in a nationwide sample of 859 internet users with scientific director the Professor George Doukidis.
More specifically, based on expert estimates, 2021 is expected to be a record year for B2C e-commerce with total sales (in products and services) of about 14 billion euros, at least 15,000 Greek companies to have a more organized digital sales channel and several online stores to have significant online annual sales of more than 10 million.
The maturity of e-commerce is recorded by the fact of maintaining the growth of online shopping and during periods when physical stores operated normally. According to the results of the survey, 50% of internet users have made an online purchase in the last 15 days, the same percentage as in June 2021, and although lower than the December 2020 measurement (61%), but twice as much as in December 2019 (26%). This means that at least 6 out of 10 internet users are now considered online shoppers. These significant percentages are still far from those of the mature markets of Western and Northern Europe, where 8 out of 10 citizens now shop online.
At least 1 in 3 online consumers are now considered highly advanced as their online shopping accounts for over 20% of their total purchases. In fact, for all online consumers, on average, e-shopping now represents 10% of their total purchases, a percentage that remains at the same levels as in June 2021.
According to the research, the percentages of online purchases by product / service category in December 2021 are approximately at the same levels as in July 2021 and somehow reduced compared to December 2020. The highest percentages are recorded in the hotel ticket categories (45 %) and electrical-electronic items (34%). They are followed by clothing (20%), toys-gifts-jewelry (17%), personal care items (13%), furniture (13%).
