Although the Czech e-commerce market has struggled with a two-year decline, Shoptet, (the largest online store operator with 37,000 Czech, Slovak and Hungarian customers), reports positive results for the past year. In 2023, e-shops reached a total turnover of 66 billion crowns, 16% more than in 2022, and their market share in the Czech Republic rose to 31%.
In the last two years, the e-commerce market has faced an overall decline. However, according to Shoptet, this has not affected small and medium-sized businesses. “Last year’s results once again showed that small and medium-sized merchants in the Czech Republic are maintaining steady growth and are beginning to compete strongly with larger companies in the market. Their market share increased from one quarter to 31%. We are also seeing a significant increase in the number of orders – it reached approximately 29 million, which represents an increase of almost 19% compared to last year,” says Samuel Huba, CEO of Shoptet, assessing the results for 2023.
Will the overall e-commerce market return to growth?
At the end of the year, the overall market looked more positive. “From the perspective of the entire Czech e-commerce market, 2023 was still influenced by the challenging economic situation in the Czech Republic. It significantly influenced consumers’ decision-making regarding the purchase of goods. Czechs continued to order from online stores regularly, but more sparingly and often chose cheaper products or brands than in the past. At the end of the year, however, the situation improved noticeably, which I see as a promise that this year we will see a return to growth in Czech e-commerce as a whole. E-shops have successfully coped with the difficult period they had to go through in the past two years. Therefore, I am convinced that 2024 will be a positive year for online sales,” Jan Vetyška, Executive Director of the Association for Electronic Commerce – APEK, evaluates the past year and predicts the growth of e-commerce.
Technologies that help small and medium-sized e-shops
Shoptet has introduced several technological improvements for e-shop operators in recent years. Among the innovations that have been met with positive feedback and high interest from merchants is the Shoptet Pay payment solution. Its use has led to a threefold increase in the volume of processed transactions and is now used by more than 8,000 businesses. “No other payment solution in the Czech Republic has experienced such rapid growth in a surprisingly short period of time. Our customers especially appreciate the simplicity and speed of the payment gateway and the maximum conversion of payments thanks to technologies that were previously available only to big players,” says Huba.
Last autumn, Shoptet also introduced Shoptet Boost, a service that aims to support smaller merchants in developing their business by improving access to financing. Thanks to this service, entrepreneurs can obtain financing of up to CZK 1,000,000. Already in the first few months, more than CZK 30 million has been invested through Shoptet Boost.
Czechs have become more popular for buying mobile phones and cosmetics
Technology products are still in vogue among Czech consumers. Mobile phones in particular have become popular, with sales up 42% compared to the previous year.
Cosmetics maintained their upward trend, which was already evident in the last quarterly comparisons. Year-on-year, turnover grew by 35%. It seems that Czech consumers are increasingly willing to invest in beauty and personal care. The trend is towards e-shops offering luxury and natural cosmetics produced locally.
Collectibles are losing popularity
On the other hand, Czechs’ interest in collectibles has fallen; here, demand has dropped by almost a quarter. The market for children’s products also suffered a decline compared to the previous year, falling by almost 6%.
The last quarter of 2023 with a 35% increase
Shoptet businesses saw a remarkable increase in the last quarter, driven by increased purchases of Christmas gifts. Turnover for the fourth quarter reached 20.6 billion crowns, an increase of 5.3 billion from the previous quarter. Czech consumers made most of their purchases in the entertainment sector (up 96%), mainly in gifts and board games. Sales of books, jewellery, clothing and works of art were also up significantly.
Source: Shoptet and CTK
