Saudi Arabia’s Booming E-Commerce Space Estimated to Touch Sar 50 billion by 2025- Survey Reveals

We have come a long way since Michael Aldrich invented electronic shopping in 1979 and with time, watched in disbelief how e-commerce transformed traditional retail business worldwide. The recent Covid pandemic and ease of access to innovative smart technology have further accelerated this transformation process as customers opted for increased safety and convenience.

E-commerce is sweeping across the world and Saudi Arabia is no exception. As the Kingdom advances towards realizing Saudi Vision 2030, new technologies and reforms are being implemented facilitating e-commerce adoption through enhanced mobile and internet usage. During covid 19, the country’s e-commerce market experienced a huge surge, about 60% as more and more customers preferred to go online for shopping with easier access to digital technology.

Market surveys conducted by global firms revealed a rapidly growing e-commerce sector in the Kingdom and as reported by Boston Consulting Group, the size of the country’s e-commerce space would exceed SAR 50 billion by 2025.  E-commerce revenue would grow at a CAGR close to 19% between 2022 to 2025, forecasted Statista. The Kingdom witnessed a steady growth of online sales for the past couple of years and mostly in apparel, electronics, and appliances categories.

Mastercard Newsroom also echoed similar thoughts earlier and reported a higher percentage of online shoppers in the kingdom compared to the Middle East and Africa region.

Saudi Arabia made great progress in e-commerce infrastructure development and as reflected in its 49th position amongst 152 countries surveyed worldwide in the B2C e-commerce index on readiness to engage in online commerce published by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

Saudi Arabia is a country of youths as about 65% of the population falls in the 14 to 29 age bracket and exhibits a high level of familiarity and skill in online and digital environments and making the country one of the most social media savvy nations in the world. As per the survey conducted by Mastercard, Saudi youths also spend a significant amount of their time upskilling themselves in digital technology. The country also has a huge base of broadband internet subscribers with a high speed of internet. The country has the highest internet penetration in the region and is expected to reach around 93% by 2023.  All together, makes the perfect ground for high online activities including banking and e-commerce.

Saudi E-Commerce Council is working on the country’s ‘e-commerce journey’ and besides developing infrastructure, also bringing in new legislation on imports of consumer products, enabling safe and secure payment systems for cashless transactions, providing supply and logistics services. The council also offers a package of services to prospective medium and small business establishments for setting up a company in Saudi Arabia.

The booming e-commerce sector in Saudi Arabia is all set to benefit its economy by developing other allied business sectors and generating employment. The supply chain and logistics sector should thrive and attract foreign investors for doing business in Saudi Arabia.