Following the results of the joint support program of eBay and Otkritie Bank for small and medium-sized businesses, “Open to the Whole World”, launched in 2020 at the height of the pandemic, the number of Russian exporters on the marketplace increased by more than 12,000 entrepreneurs and exceeded 41,000. According to statistics, the revenue of new sellers on the platform increased by 68% compared to 2019, and the total number of Russian shopping ads on eBay reached 1.9 million. Ilya Kretov, CEO of eBay in global emerging markets, shared: Russian entrepreneurs “Open to the whole world” pushed us to continue the initiative.
Ilya Kretov, CEO of eBay Global Emerging Markets, shared: “The results of the first round of the Open to the Whole World Support Program for Russian Entrepreneurs prompted us to continue our initiative. We see that the project turned out to be really necessary for representatives of Russian small and medium-sized businesses during the crisis, helped to find new sales markets, and expand the audience. According to our statistics, about 50% of entrepreneurs who registered and listed their products on eBay over the past year were able to convert their first listings for sale. “
The top export subcategories, actively growing in terms of revenue from sales from Russia, included Outdoor Leisure Products (+ 293%), Puzzles (+ 272%), Perfumeria (+ 172%), Auto Parts “(+ 103%), and” Video Games “(+ 86%). The best-selling items from Russian entrepreneurs on eBay were face masks, mini-figurines from the LEGO Marvel and Star Wars collections, colored strings for acoustic guitars, rings with semi-precious stones, and headphones. Among the most expensive sales to foreign users were medical laboratory equipment for more than $ 25,000, a Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph watch for $ 20,000, a Caterpillar bulldozer for $ 15,000, a hockey card with Ilya Kovalchuk for almost $ 15,000, and a Hermes bag for 10 000 dollars.
The most active countries-buyers from the eBay program participants were the USA, Germany, Great Britain, Canada, and Israel. In addition to them, sellers found customers on the marketplace from Japan, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Chile, New Zealand, and other remote locations on the planet. The geographic record holder among Russian sellers is an entrepreneur who sells collectible paraphernalia for sports fans – he has sent his goods to 106 different countries.
If we talk about regional leaders in terms of the number of new sellers over the year of the program’s existence, in addition to the Moscow and Leningrad regions, the top 3 included the Republic of Bashkortostan (> 2,200 new sellers), Krasnodar Krai (> 880) and the Chelyabinsk region (> 780).
On the eve of Russian Entrepreneurship Week, eBay and Otkritie Bank are launching the second round of the Open to the World 2.0 initiative. The program is aimed at representatives of small and medium-sized businesses who have decided to start exporting using eBay and are ready to sell over 100 items of goods abroad. As part of the project, eBay will provide service packages worth thousands of US dollars free of charge: after preliminary selection, entrepreneurs will receive a free subscription to the marketplace services, access to the export sales training program, increased listing limits, and the opportunity to get the help of a personal consultant.
In addition, the project partner, Otkritie Bank, will offer all new sellers 2 free months of account maintenance, external payments, transfers to individuals, and intra-bank transfers until June 30, 2021.
Nadia Cherkasova, Deputy Chairman of the Board of Otkritie Bank, noted: “The partnership of Otkritie Bank with one of the largest marketplaces in the world eBay is developing successfully and dynamically, but most importantly, it really helps our entrepreneurs adapt to the new reality and expand the sales market through high-quality online sales channels. For entrepreneurs who develop their business on eBay, we have offered a special comprehensive program. Bank “Otkritie” offers all new sellers two months of free account maintenance, external payments, transfers to individuals, and intrabank transfers until June 30, 2021, within the framework of the “Advantageous Start” campaign. I would especially like to note that we are seeing an increase in the export activity of SMEs not only in Moscow and St. Petersburg but also in other regions of Russia. Our entrepreneurs have successfully adapted to the difficulties caused by the pandemic and its economic consequences, and we are helping them in this.”
Ilya Kretov, CEO of eBay Global Emerging Markets, expressed confidence: “According to our joint research with Data Insight, eBay has become the most popular platform for cross-border trading – one in five online exporters uses eBay to sell abroad. In addition, we see a monthly increase in new sellers from Russia on the marketplace, which only convinces us of the need to launch Open to the World 2.0. I am sure such initiatives should be implemented on a regular basis and promote export development ”.
Source: eBay Press Service
