Entering Russia via cross-border e-commerce : opportunities and challenges in consumer goods industries

E-commerce is still a new concept in Russia and cross-border e-commerce is even newer. With the acceleration of internet technologies in the last years, the e-commerce market started to gain momentum in the country and contributing to national economy significantly. All the improvements have made Russia an attractive market, especially for cross-border B2C e- commerce as the growth of cross-border e-commerce market is the double of the domestic market. The country presents many opportunities but also challenges for foreign players due to its different structure in terms of geography, policy, technology, logistics and culture. However, there is lack of comprehensive literature research over this specific topic which creates the starting point of the present thesis. The purpose of the study is to provide knowledge and better understanding of Russian cross- border e-commerce market characteristics that can serve as guide for companies planning to do cross-border online business in Russia. In order to provide this knowledge, Russian market and leading players’ solutions in Russia are examined. Moreover, Russian consumers’ characteristics and their preferences in the online shopping are analyzed. Finally, opportunities and challenges are identified for the new investors. The thesis consists of five main sections: (i) introduction which is background of the study and shows significance of the topic, (ii) analysis of main e-commerce players in Russia, (iii) analysis of Russian consumers, (iv) case examples, and (v) conclusion.