- The retail industry dominates JCB cardmember spend in Russia with a 48% share of total spend. High fashion and luxury are key categories within the sector.

- From September 2019, JCB has experienced Russian JCB cardmember online spend increasing month-on-month. Top months for spend over the 2-year period from 2018 to 2020 are October, November, and January.

- In face-to-face (F2F) retail, German and Italian brands experienced an increase in JCB cardmember spend from 2019 to 2020, making up about 20% of spend combined, while Belarus saw the most marked increase in F2F spend YoY with 22%.

London and Moscow, Oct 21, 2021 - (JCN Newswire) - JCB International Co., Ltd., the international operations subsidiary of JCB Co., Ltd., has found a notable 20% increase in ecommerce spend by Russian cardmembers from 2019 to 2020.

Further, Russian JCB cardmember data shows that from 2019 to 2020, F2F shopping made up a higher proportion of total spend (at 62%), while, in 2020, which could be expected with the pandemic, JCB cardmember spend in Russia shifted in favour of ecommerce, with 55% of total spend being online.

These figures have been released alongside the launch of JCB's latest whitepaper, Explore Russia as a Key Growth Market, which includes exclusive insights for European retailers on Russian spending patterns and why a unified channel strategy is important to maximise opportunities.

Takashi Suetsugu, General Director, JCB International (Eurasia) LLC, comments; "The relatively untapped market of the Russian Federation is opening up, and merchants should consider the tremendous opportunity for increased revenue and a widened customer network available within the region. JCB's presence in Russia is growing strong, and brand awareness is key. The better we can understand the spending habits and behaviours of our Russian cardmembers, the more we can empower our partners and merchants for them to offer better, more seamless and secure experiences to their customers."

Russians have embraced shopping online. Ecommerce/Mcommerce jumped during 2020, with trade volumes up 60% on the previous year and a total spend of RUB 3.22 trillion in 2020 (USD 43.76 billion), says the Association of Online Traders (AKIT).

Further, a survey by Global Blue at the end of 2020, 100% of affluent and frequent Russian shoppers stated that they would travel once quarantine restrictions lifted and 50% said they would feel safe visiting Europe. This suggests that in-person spend is set to boom again once further travel is permitted.

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