E-commerce gains momentum in Kazakhstan

E-commerce is rapidly gaining momentum in Kazakhstan. In 2020 alone, the online retail market exceeded 500 billion tenge (US$1.157 billion). Experts say that the rise of e-commerce was largely driven by the pandemic. If electronic commerce was a secondary sales channel for many entrepreneurs just a year ago, then after strict quarantine restrictions the situation has changed dramatically. Moreover, stores with online platforms were the least affected by the crisis.

 “Of course, there was a little panic at the beginning of the pandemic, because all of the stores have closed. So, we started looking for new ways to sell and focused on online sales. We worked directly with logistics companies and courier services,” said a designer Anar Seitzhan.

Branch Manager at an international logistics company Ramilya Akhmetova said that it is the fashion business that still feels pain from the lockdown, because it is in this industry that the increase in the transportation cost affects the final price of a product. 

“In this market segment, it is the fashion industry that has suffered, since all goods imported from China and Southeast Asia have strongly affected the total price of goods. The priority segments have changed. If earlier, the fashion industry has always been in circulation, but now the volumes are no longer that large. Of course, the market has been reoriented,” noted Ramilya Akhmetova, Branch Manager of an international transportation and logistics company.

It is projected that e-commerce will continue to grow rapidly in 2021. This will be facilitated by the entry of new players into the market. In addition, existing trading sites will also expand.

 

Translation by Assem Zhanmukhanova

Editing by Galiya Khassenkhanova