In the second half of 2022, several events shifted the e-commerce world, too. In the second part of our regular blog, we focused on the most important e-commerce news – we summarise the important players in red and green numbers; we also look at interesting acquisitions, movements on the market, investments, startups and news in the area of logistics. 

How European e-commerce is faring

• Slovak e-commerce fell by 13% during 2022. The decline occurred for the first time in the history of Slovakia, moreover, after three years of rocket growth caused by the pandemic. The reason is the energy crisis and the ongoing military conflict in Ukraine.
• Overall turnover of e-shops also decreased year-on-year in the Czech Republic. Domestic e-shops recorded a decrease of 12%, which, according to experts, was caused (similarly as in Slovakia) by high inflation and the energy crisis.
• European e-commerce recorded overall growth in 2022, despite several countries reporting lower sales. Western Europe has the largest share of turnover at a level of 63%, while turnover in Eastern Europe increased by 2% year-on-year.

In red numbers: players with losses and financial problems

• Shares of the Czech e-commerce pharmacy Pilulka fell by 60%. In a comparison with other players in the country, this is the largest drop on the Prague Stock Exchange. Sales of the Pilulka Group were 104 million euros last year, and total sales even increased slightly.
• Well-known Czech optician Eiffel Optic declared bankruptcy after almost thirty years of operation. The network of stores with glasses and contact lenses submitted a proposal for bankruptcy proceedings; it also has nearly twenty operations in Slovakia.

Green numbers and emerging stars

• Slovak GymBeam surpassed the magic threshold of 100 million euros in sales. The e-shop with fitness products thus exceeded even its own expectations, with its year-on-year growth rate reaching an unbelievable 67%.
• The rapid growth of the largest Czech e-shop Alza continues. The Internet unit of our western neighbours increased its turnover by approximately one-fifth, and profits grew at a similar rate. Alza can thank more than eighteen million orders from 5.25 million customers for the company’s historically best results.
• The online supermarket Rohlík served 1.5 million customers last year. Aside from Prague, the e-shop also operates in Vienna, Munich and Budapest, and its overall turnover achieved a record 574 million euros last year.
• Sales of the Czech e-shop Grizly surpassed half a billion for the first time. The nut and health food retailer managed to achieve due to its focus on efficiency, creativity and flexibility.
• Kytary.cz generated sales of 40 million euros in 2022. Because of this success, the e-shop is the largest online seller of musical instruments in the Czech Republic and sells goods online in eleven European countries and employs more than 200 people.
• Despite a year-on-year decrease in sales, the Czech Footshop made a profit. The electronic streetwear retailer successfully survived a difficult year in Czech e-commerce in part due to its cooperation with the brands Nike and Queens.
• German fashion platform Zalando continues to grow. The number of active customers grew by 8% and thus surpassed the 50 million mark. The introduction of a minimum order value should also contribute to the growth of sales and profit.
• The last quarter of 2022 was the best ever for Uber. The passenger transport company achieved its desired growth; year-on-year this was by 49%. Uber earned 8 billion euros in revenue over the last three months of last year.

Key moves and expansions you should not miss 

• The discount chain Action is coming to Slovakia. The Dutch company already has more than two thousand stores, the newest should be added in early March 2023 in the Danubia shopping centre in Bratislava. This is the main competition for stores like Pepco and Kik.
• The Czech e-shop Sportega is planning to expand into France, Italy, the UK and Denmark. The electronic store originally called Sportobchod.cz wants to be a hockey unit in Western countries; it has thus far operated in Slovakia, Hungary, Germany and Austria in addition to the Czech Republic.

Investments in European e-commerce

• The Czech group of Jiří Šmejc, Emma Capital, acquired a 75% stake in Mailstep. This is one of the largest Czech companies focused on logistics in e-commerce, and this is the largest acquisition ever in the sphere of Czech Internet logistics.

Startups

• Slovak technology company Fuergy acquired 16 million euros from investors. The startup has been working on the market for four years now and has managed to develop software that helps companies save energy. It combines batteries and algorithms and manages and using artificial intelligence manages the production and consumption of electricity based on historical data.
• Slovenská sporiteľňa is launching training for startups called Startup Bootcamp. The first nine Slovak projects tried out two days of training and feedback at the beginning of December 2022. Due to the great interest of young companies, the course will continue and will be conducted several times this year.
• Startup billionaires lost nearly 100 billion euros worldwide. Several so-called unicorns (that is, startups with a value exceeding a billion dollars) saw significantly slower growth. The reason may be the collapse of the FTX crypto exchange and the problems of technology companies.

News in the field of logistics

• Mall Group is closing all of its brick-and-mortar stores in the Czech Republic. At least seventy employees will lose their jobs at the end of January. The reason is the transformation of the company connected with the integration with the Polish Allegro group.
• The logistics and technology company DODO is heading to Germany. Last year it increased its sales by 39%, and the number of orders for their courier company increased by 49%. Up to now, the company has operated in seven European countries, where it served clients in thirteen different segments.
• FedEx is to facilitate customer returns. A simpler process will involve accessing a wider network of locations with the help of a simple QR code. FedEx will offer problem-free returns to small and medium-sized businesses.

Additional interesting data

• After a major slump in the first half of 2022 Dedoles came close to being rescued. The company decided to resolve its financial problems through restructuring, which was finally approved by creditors at the beginning of 2023.
• Bolt is ending its express grocery delivery in the Czech Republic. The Estonian platform decided to end this service due to the lack of interest, but it continues with alternative taxis, food delivery and e-scooters.
• The advantageous offers of the Czech Slevomat were again successful in 2022. During the second half of the year the travel and experience portal was in the best shape ever, with year-on-year growth by 58%.
• Google warns that if it finds content created with the help of AI, it may lower the website’s ranking. The world's most famous search engine considers ChatGPT a threat that can damage and change the way we search the Internet.

An overview of current events in the world of e-commerce? You won't miss anything important with us. We’ll publish another installment of news from the world of e-commerce soon.