The rapid development of e-commerce in Russia has given a strong impetus to the sale of sneakers and other sports products in the last few months. From March to May, overall sales over the internet jumped by as much as 30 percent in the country, according to a market survey conducted by a Russian state-owned company, Platform OFD, and a think tank called Geointellect. Sports products enjoyed the strongest growth.
The most popular sports items were shoes, trousers and T-shirts, the study revealed. There were some other goods which increased during this period, including electronic gadgets and building materials, but none of the segments showed the growth recorded by sporting goods.
The strong growth in online sales of sports brands has also been acknowledged by major Russian retailers like the Lamoda Group. The fashion e-tailer, which operates in Russia, Belarus, Ukraine and Kazakhstan, reported a sales increase of 23.5 percent in the first quarter of 2019 to 8 billion rubles (€109m-$123m). The strongest increase was observed in the sports shoe segment, where the turnover climbed by around 40 percent, led by orders placed through mobile devices. Thanks to the positive sales dynamics, Lamoda managed to stop making losses.
