Speaking of Spain, in addition to being one of the top 10 countries in the world of gastronomy, with ham, wine, paella and other delicious food and wine, it is also the second largest country in the European Union, and the Spanish Empire was also the most powerful country in Europe at that time during the Renaissance, and today, Spain is the thirteenth largest economy in the world, and it is also an important tourist destination and cultural center.
Today, follow Xiao A to gain insight into the Spanish e-commerce market and see how cross-border people can tap the opportunities.
The fourth largest market in Europe
In the current economic market, as a developed capitalist country, Spain is considered to be the fourth largest B2C e-commerce market in Europe, after Germany, the United Kingdom and France.
Spain's cross-border e-commerce market is showing positive growth momentum, with online shopping penetration expected to rise to 84 by 20278%, and the compound annual growth rate of e-commerce revenue is expected to reach 1063%。
From the perspective of import and export, Spain imports more goods from abroad than sells overseas, which means that Spain's cross-border e-commerce market has huge growth potential, and China, as the main country of Spanish imports, has a high proportion of goods made in China in the Spanish market, which provides a positive reference for Chinese enterprises and brands to enter the Spanish market.
At present, the main channels for Spanish consumers to shop online include e-commerce platforms, retail** and brand official websites, of which nearly half of the products come from the Chinese market!
In addition to the well-known Amazon, eBay, AliExpress, as well as El Corte Ingles, PC Componentes, Mediamarkt, Zalando, etc., Temu, Shein, and TikTok Shop, which are not far behind in the past two years, have also made efforts to lay out the Spanish market, attracting more consumers with strategies such as talent marketing and low-price competition.
At present, Spain's Internet penetration rate is as high as 93%, and the number of users is large, which also provides a broad market foundation for cross-border merchants to expand their business in Spain.
The rise of the silver economy
The aging population is intensifying, and the silver economy is emerging.
More than 90% of Internet penetration rates bring nearly 70% of consumers who are keen on online shopping. In 2023, European countries are facing the challenge of inflation, and some mature e-commerce markets represented by the United Kingdom and Germany have fallen into recession, ** retail sales have fallen again and again, while Spain has maintained a rare growth rate.
According to the latest survey by inforetail, it will be as high as 648% of Spanish consumers make an online purchase at least once a month, and they are keen to do so on their mobile phones, with 75% of online orders in the country being made via smartphones.
Among these consumers, middle-aged people aged 34-44 shop most frequently online, 697% shop** every month, and 69% of Spanish consumers aged 55 to 64 shop online at least once a month, an increase of 7% compared to 2022. The middle-aged and elderly groups form the backbone of consumption in the Spanish e-commerce market.
You must know that the aging of the population in Spain is more serious, which also leads to the continuous expansion of the online shopping group of the elderly, and the silver economy is emerging. Compared to younger people, the level of spending on online shopping is more stable, with the average monthly spending on online shopping among older people in Spain being 65% higher than the overall average in 2023.
Older means more financial resources, and it also means higher average customer value......However, if cross-border businesses want to grasp the silver economy, in addition to choosing the right products, the thinking of advertising may also need to change.
Unlike young people who are attracted to orders by advertisements on social networks and short ones, the advertisements of middle-aged and elderly people shopping online in Spain are mainly concentrated in some traditional channels, such as TV commercials, newspapers and magazines, as well as recommendations from friends and family, which usually have high coverage and trust, and are important channels for them to understand online shopping products.
Although the proportion of the elderly using social media is relatively low, with the popularity of social media and the influence of young people, more and more middle-aged and elderly people have begun to try to contact and use social media, and will also learn about online shopping product information by paying attention to brands and viewing user evaluations.
Popular payment methods
Comprehensive and fast payment methods can help merchants retain more orders.
In Spain, credit cards are still the preferred payment method for consumers, among which Visa, MasterCard and American Express are the main ones, which account for the main share of credit card payments, so most Spanish e-commerce platforms usually support credit card payments, and many merchants also widely accept this payment method.
Debit cards are also one of the most common payment methods for online purchases in Spain, as in China, where the payment is made directly from the consumer's bank account. There are also third-party payment platforms such as PayPal, skrill, neteller, etc., which can be paid by binding a credit or debit card, which has the same function as our Alipay and WeChat Pay.
Cash on delivery is another common payment method for online purchases in Spain, which is a good option for consumers who have doubts about online shopping, they can receive the goods and pay for them, and cash on delivery is also very popular in many countries in Southeast Asia, but it is not so friendly to merchants, increasing operating costs and risks, and may also face the risk of chargebacks or delayed payments.
In addition, with the popularity of mobile payments, more and more Spanish consumers are using mobile e-wallets to make payments, such as Multibanco, Pago Efectivo, SoFort, Paysafecard, etc.
Sofort is a ** bank transfer payment method, covering many countries in Europe, the most used SOFORT payment countries are Germany, Belgium, Austria, etc., and are also widely used in Spain, SOFORT provides the best payment solution for e-commerce, it has the characteristics of real-time transactions, simple processes, and no chargeback (can not refuse payment), more friendly to merchants.
Paysafecard, on the other hand, is a prepaid payment method that allows consumers to purchase a PaysafeCard voucher at a retail store and pay online by entering the 16-digit PIN code on the voucher. This payment method, which does not rely on a bank account or credit card**, is also very popular in Spain, where consumers can purchase paysafecard vouchers at thousands of retail outlets, including supermarkets, petrol stations and newsstands. Due to its convenience and security, paysafecard payments have a certain market share in the e-commerce sector in Spain.
A little bit of advice
Many cross-border merchants use Spain as a "bridgehead" to enter the European market, but it should be noted that the Spanish e-commerce market is becoming increasingly competitive.
In the past, Amazon and AliExpress laid out early, and then Temu, Shein, and TikTok Shop entered the market, and independent station merchants need to face greater challenges if they want to start their journey to Spain. AsiaBill couldn't help but think of the bullfighting culture in Spain, where it was the warriors who dared to carry a red cloth to face the "restless mad bull".
Despite the fierce competition, the overall performance of Chinese e-commerce in the Spanish market has been excellent. According to the analysis of the financial platform fintonic, the sales growth momentum of many Chinese e-commerce platforms, including temu, in Spain is good, but temu is a "low-price" weapon in the Spanish market to gain a significant competitive advantage.
After all, it's cheaper than anyone, and it's really ...... to fight it
In Spain, the popularity of TikTok is very high, and the number of users is growing rapidly, and the number of TikTok users in Spain should exceed 20 million, and they are catching up with social media such as Instagram and Facebook, and these users are very active by spending more than 1 hour a day on TikTok.
In addition, Telefónica and TikTok have entered into a strategic partnership, which also supports the development of TikTok in Spain, allowing brands to place ads on TikTok to reach more consumers and expand more traffic**.
In addition, AsiaBill also reminded merchants to pay attention to product compliance, whether it is a platform or an independent station, and recently Amazon and BMW Group filed a lawsuit in Spain against four sellers who sold counterfeit BMW auto parts, and then closed the defendant's sales account and deleted the relevant products.
If the perpetrator is found to have sold a large amount of counterfeits, it may involve fines and prison sentences, so merchants should be cautious, no matter which market they carry out, they need to comply with local intellectual property laws and avoid infringement.
In the face of enthusiastic Spaniards and the huge potential of the e-commerce market, are you interested in increasing this market?