Russian e-commerce firm Ozon said that the number of orders through its platform in the third quarter of its financial year were up 239% on the corresponding quarter last year.
Some 56.2 million orders were delivered in Q3 2021, up from 16.6 million in Q3 2020. Compared to the second quarter, order numbers were up 37%.
Shoppers Turning To Online
The impressive growth was driven by increased customer acquisition, with growing numbers of Russian shoppers turning to e-commerce platforms even as COVID-related restrictions subsided.
The Ozon platform attracted an additional one million active users per month during the third quarter, meaning its customer base exceeded 21 million active users in the third quarter, up 16% quarter on quarter and 87% year on year.
The number of active sellers using the platform nearly quadrupled in the past year, and currently exceeds 60,000. Close to 40,000 sellers have joined the platform since the start of the year.
Gross merchandise value (GMV) including services increased to RUB 108.3 billion, compared to RUB 44.2 billion in the third quarter of last year; a 145% rise.
Raising GMV Guidance
“In Q3, our GMV more than doubled compared to last year," said Alexander Shulgin, Ozon chief executive, adding that the group is raising its GMV growth guidance to 120% for the full year.
"GMV growth accelerated in Q3," he added. "In addition, we optimised our investments to achieve greater efficiency. The result is higher gross profit, lower marketing spend and adjusted EBITDA."
In the most recent quarter, Ozon added a 'record amount' of additional warehouse space to its operations, with total warehouse space now amounting to more than 770,000 square metres.
"In preparation for the next leg of our development, we have already secured over 80% of the targeted new fulfilment space for 2022 which is pivotal to our medium-term growth," Shulgin added.
"We also see continuous improvement in the cost per order on year-on-year basis – a testimony to the fact that our strategy to focus on high-frequency operations is paying-off.”
Continued Investment
Elsewhere, Daniil Fedorov, Ozon COO, said that the group's investment into new fulfilment centres, sorting centres and pick-up locations across Russia is boosting both its clients' order frequency as well as regional entrepreneurs.
"Around 70% of our sellers’ businesses are located outside of Moscow, and they rely heavily on our platform’s support and the ability to expand their sales geography," he said. "Overall, since the beginning of the year the number of our active sellers increased by 40,000 businesses – and as a result, in Q3 our sellers’ goods accounted for two-thirds of the company’s turnover.
Ozon made its debut on the Nasdaq last year and recently launched a meal delivery service for ready-to-eat meals. The business also recently expanded in Kazakhstan, alongside Kazpost.
© 2021 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest Technology news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine
