In both, Latvia (79,9 per cent) and Lithuania (69,8 per cent) consumers emphasised the superior pricing policies when shopping online and the comfort it generally brings to the table (source: Gemius, E-commerce reports 2017: Latvia, Lithuania). In both countries users strongly feel that while shopping online, they are not restricted by stores’ opening hours (71,4 per cent of Latvian users) and they strongly value the possibility of making a purchase from their own homes (75 per cent of Lithuanian users).

In Latvia, 68,9 per cent of users also drew attention to the overall effortlessness when it comes to comparing different stores’ offers, which proves to be much harder when in a physical store. In Lithuania, almost 69,8 per cent of users list home delivery as one of their top reasons for shopping online.

When it comes to major drawbacks of shopping online, the number one issue for consumers in both countries seems to be long delivery time, mentioned by 40 per cent of Latvian users and around 36 per cent of Lithuanian users.

In Latvia around 35 per cent of consumers feel they cannot find necessary information about the product they intend to purchase, and, around 33 per cent of them cannot manage to find the product they are looking for.

Lithuanian users are mostly taken aback by high delivery charges (33 per cent), and around 37 per cent of them report having received a product that did not meet their expectations.

Even though in both countries, online stores seem to be a primary source of information prior to making a purchase, it is important to note that around 55 per cent of Latvians use price comparison sites, whereas Lithuanians (35 per cent) prefer to ask their friends or family for recommendations.

28 per cent of Latvians and 33 per cent of Lithuanian online shoppers predict that their online expenses will increase in the upcoming year, while only 3 per cent of Lithuanians and 26 per cent of Latvians thinks that expenses will decrease.

Source: Gemius, E-commerce reports 2017: Latvia, Lithuania