Over the first three months of 2001, a Romanian websurfer spent less than 4,000 lei on the average in rate.ro and emania.ro virtual shops.
Even though Romanians' access to Internet and electronic payment is less than insufficient, two of the virtual shops emerged over the past eight months had a powerful sales development, reaching four billion lei in Q1, according to managers' estimates.
Established last fall and winter, rate.ro and emania.ro, the two leading online stores retailing household goods and computers, collected 2.7bn lei and 1.225bn respectively, in Q1, 2001.
This sales volume was a surprise to the managers of the two electronic commerce sites.
"The revenues were three times above estimates and if excluding advertising expenses, associated to the launch of the site, rate.ro company is already making profit," Silviu Sarbu, chairman of the Fix Computers Company which operates the virtual store, told Ziarul Financiar.
Sarbu estimates that rate.ro's earnings will go up to $800,000 in 2001, in comparison with the previous forecast, of "only" $400,000. Furthermore, taking an unusual step for the classical electronic commerce evolution, Rate.ro SRL will get "real" by opening a traditional store on Calea Victoriei.
In its turn, "emania.ro is expecting to go beyond the 3 billion lei threshold," Olimpia Dobre, marketing manager of the shop, told Ziarul Financiar. Emania.ro, launched by New Media Concept company, registered a 41% increase in sales month-on-month (March compared with February), due to the use of classic sales strategies (promotions and contests).
eShop.ro, SoftNet's virtual store, also doubled its sales throughout March and April, in comparison with the beginning of the year, but marketing manager Emanuela Cocosila is somehow more moderate in making a forecast: "It is hard to say whether this market will grow. There are major obstacles in its way: the low number of computers per thousand people and the few payment means the people have."
The 4bn in total revenues for both rate.ro and emania.ro in Q1, this year and during Easter Holidays were a surprise and real record for the two virtual stores.
Rate.ro store had 319 orders over the first three months of this year, 156 of which were either dropped or were impossible to verify. Therefore, 141 orders were actually honoured, which accounts for 2.1 orders/day delivered during business days.
In Q1, 2001, 190,000 unique visitors accessed the site, 52,000 of them coming back at least once. Silviu Sarbu, Fix Computers chairman, says the options of Romanian consumers focused on IT products and services and household appliances, 90% of the products having been sold in instalments. "The main reason why people shop at rate.ro is undoubtedly the crediting system," Sarbu feels.
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