Al Shaya - Brands and Markets

Delivered November 20th, 2019

33 min read

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E-commerce Stats - United Arab Emirates

Internet penetration in the UAE is 99% and is at the same level as mobile penetration. E-commerce spend in the UAE is currently estimated to be US$16 billion.
E-commerce Stats: United Arab EmiratesWhen it comes to internet usage in the United Arab Emirates, out of 9.61 million people living in the UAE, internet penetration is reported to be 99%. In total numbers, 9.52 million people are active internet users. 
There are 19.23 million mobile subscriptions in the UAE which translates to 200% of the overall population. 99% of the population is active on social media, and 92% of the population is active on social media via their phones. 
 99% of the population has a mobile phone, with 96% of the population being smartphone users and only 3% using feature phones. Additionally, 71% own a laptop or a desktop computer, and 28% own a tablet device.
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E-commerce spend in the UAE is estimated to reach US$16 billion in 2019. It will grow at a CAGR of 23% between 2019 and 2022. 
The typical UAE shopper spends US$1,648 on e-commerce shopping annually, with a projected CAGR of 29.6% until 2022.
Travel tickets are currently the most popular category among online shoppers (US$1,521 spent on average annually), followed by US$250 on consumer electronics.
Banking services, including debit and credit card transactions, made up US$9.7 billion of the total spend in 2019 regarding e-commerce purchases.
The proportion of e-commerce spend as a percentage of total retail in the UAE is only 3% (compared with 10% on the global level). The region is projected to grow at a CAGR of 24.6% until 2022, which is faster than any other region in the world.

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E-commerce Stats - Kuwait

Kuwait is a country with high internet penetration levels, however, e-commerce is not too popular in the country. Further details surrounding the use of the internet and e-commerce in the country are provided below.
Internet PenetrationThe current level of internet penetration in Kuwait is 98% as of 2018.
This represents a total of 4.14 million internet users out of the total population of 4.22 million.
Mobile Internet UsersThe total number of internet users that use the internet on their mobile phones is 3.29 million.
This represents a mobile internet penetration rate of 78% of the total population.
E-Commerce SpendThe total spending on e-commerce in Kuwait was valued at $670 million in 2017.
The total spending on e-commerce in Kuwait is expected to reach $1.07 billion by 2020.
As per the calculations presented below, the total spending on e-commerce in Kuwait was estimated to be $770.5 million in 2018.
E-Commerce Share in RetailThe total retail sales in Kuwait were estimated to be $16.7 billion in 2018.
As per the calculations presented below, the share of e-commerce in total retail sales was estimated to be 4.6%.
Research StrategyWe started our research by looking for market research reports for Kuwait. We were able to locate some of the information easily, e.g. the internet penetration levels in the country. However, some information was not directly available. As a result, we have used other pieces of available information to triangulate the desired information.
Even after attempting to triangulate the requested information, we were unable to determine the penetration levels for smartphones and feature phones separately. This is because information pertaining to the total number or percentage of feature phone users in Kuwait was widely unavailable.
To find out the penetration levels for smartphone and feature phone users separately, we looked initially looked through market research reports hoping to find relevant statistics but to no avail. Instead, we were able to find other useful information, e.g. the overall internet penetration rate, that we have provided in this brief.
Subsequently, we looked through credible news and media sources, e.g. Arabian Business, Oxford Business Group, but no helpful information was found. These sources published overarching statistics, e.g. the retail and e-commerce spending in the country, but not the minor details.
As a last resort, we looked through global organizations, e.g. World Bank, CIA Factbook, and International Telecommunication Union, for statistics without any success. We found a research report that stated that the statistics compiled in the report were sourced from these organizations, hence it would make sense to look through these organizations for statistics. After exhausting all possibilities of finding the exact information requested, we have provided the penetration levels for mobile phone users as a whole as an alternative.
The details of the triangulation of the total spending on e-commerce in 2018 and the share of e-commerce in total retail sales are given below.
CalculationThe total spending on e-commerce in Kuwait in 2018 can be calculated by using the 2017 spending and the projected spending to 2020 as follows:
E-commerce spending in 2017 = $670 million 
E-commerce projection to 2020 = $1.02 billion 
CAGR = [(End Value / Start Value)^(1/Years)] - 1 = [(1,020,000,000 / 670,000,000)^(1/3)] - 1 = 0.15 = 15%
E-commerce in 2018 = $670 million * 1.15 = $770.5 million
The share of e-commerce in total retail sales in Kuwait can be calculated as follows:
E-commerce sales in 2018 = $770.5 million
Retail sales in 2018 = $16.7 billion 
E-commerce as percentage of retail = ($770.5 million / $16.7 billion) * 100 = 4.6%

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E-commerce Stats - Egypt

Currently, the penetration rate of internet in Egypt is 50%, about 49.2 million people in the country are internet users. Nearly 98% of Egyptian internet users access the internet via their mobile phone (feature phones) and about 57% via their smartphones.
Internet penetration in EgyptEgypt's internet penetration rate is currently 50%, about 49.2 million people in the country are internet users.
 The country witnessed a 41% increase compared to January 2017, about 14 million new users within 12 months.
Egyptians mostly use the Internet to search for information, followed by social media usage, checking news and media and online shopping. 
According to research, "Egypt’s internet users spend about three hours and 19 minutes on average viewing broadcasts, streaming videos and playing online games. Meanwhile, Egypt’s internet users spend about an hour and 11 minutes on average streaming music every day"
penetration levels of internet in Egypt Nearly 98% of Egyptian internet users access the internet via their mobile phone (feature phones) and about 57% via their smartphones.
 Total e-commerce spend on travel, banking, and retail.According to the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, In 2017, B2c e-commerce was valued at US$ 5 billion in Egypt. E-commerce accounts for 0.4% of retail sales in the country.
About US$ 133 billion accounts for e-commerce spend on the retail segment.
According to a survey by Hootsuite, about 40% of Internet users in Egypt explore the internet for products or services, 35% visit an online store and 22% purchase online.
According to BCD travel, in 2017 about US$3 billion was spent on the travel sector. "The travel booking payments through mobile in Egypt is expected to record a CAGR of 20% to reach US$ 206.6 million by 2025."
According to research, about 75% of the banks in Egypt are offering internet banking services.
 The proportion of e-commerce spend as a percentage of total retailThe proportion of e-commerce spend on retail in Egypt is about 0.4%. 
Research strategy
To provide some general insights regarding the adoption of e-commerce in Egypt, We commenced our research by reviewing through market reports such as Ibis world, PRNewswire, Euromonitor and more. We had hoped to find reports on internet penetration, the total e-commerce spends in the country on services such as travel, banking, and retail in Egypt. We were able to find the internet penetration and total e-commerce spend on retail. Unfortunately, the team could not find any details around the total e-commerce spend on banking and travel.

Next, we searched governmental and research databases such as Egypt State Information Service, the government of Egypt and more. The had hoped to find quantitative data on the total e-commerce spend in the country on services such as travel and banking. No studies focused specifically on this topic. While reports on digitization across industries in Egypt were available, they did not focus specifically on the total e-commerce spend in the country on services such as travel and banking.

Next, we decided to identify the biggest players in the travel and banking sector in Egypt. We aimed to find any articles published by these players regarding the total e-commerce spend in the country on banking and the travel industries. Through this search, the team was able to find that "businesses spent less than US$3 billion (48 billion Egyptian pounds) on travel in Egypt in 2017." Unfortunately, we could not find any data regarding the actual e-commerce spend on the banking and travel sector. We have been able to provide some helpful key findings.

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Demographic Analysis - United Arab Emirates

47% of the population in the United Arab Emirates is considered part of the Millennial generation. 42% of e-commerce customers in the United Arab Emirates is between the ages of 26 to 35.
United Arab Emirates DemographicsGenderThe total population of the United Arab Emirates is 9,770,529.
 30.9%
 of the population, or 3,054,051 is female.
 69.1%
 of the population, or 6,836,349 are male.
GenerationsGeneration Z makes up 21.99% of the population in the United Arab Emirates. This accounts for 2,071,319 people.
4,602,904 people in the United Arab Emirates are considered Millennials. This accounts for 47% of the total population.
E-Commerce Demographics 42% of e-commerce customers in the United Arab Emirates is between the ages of 26 to 35.
Five Year ProjectionsThe population of the United Arab Emirates is not expected to have any significant changes within the next 5 years. The population has seen a slight decrease in recent years, which is expected to continue.
Research StrategyMillennials have been defined as people born between 1980 and 1994 and are between the ages of 25 and 39. Generation Z has been defined as people born between 1995 and 2015, and are between the ages of 24 and 4.
CalculationsTo determine the number of Millennials in the United Arab Emirates we added the number of people aged between 25 and 39 in the country.

 351,157 (Females 25-29) + 473,808 (Females 30-34) + 406,649 (Females 35-39) + 1,082,433 (Males 25-29) + 1,321,938 (Males 30-34) + 966.919 (Males 35-39) = 4,602,904. 

Percentage of Millennials in the United Arab Emirates;

4,602,904 / 9,770,529 (total population) = 47%.

To determine the number of Generation Z's in the United Arab Emirates we added the number of people aged between 4 and 24 in the country.

 251,005 (Females 5-9) + 222,416 (Females 10-14) + 188,927 (Females 15-19) + 228,503 (Females 20-24) + 261,570 (Males 5-9) + 231,043 (Males 10-14) + 200,605 (Males 15-19) + 487,250 (Males 20-24) = 2,071,319.

Percentage of Generation Z's in the United Arab Emirates;

2,071,319 / 9,770,529 = 21.2%.

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Demographic Analysis - Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia consists of 57% men and 42% women. Millennials and GenZs account for 54% of the population and approximately 58% of e-commerce spend. The details of the study have been explained below.

Demographic Characteristic of the KSAThe kingdom of Saudi Arabia has a population of 34,218169 people. Of that number 57.73% (19,754,149) are males and 42.27% (14,464,020) are females. It is projected that the population would grow by 2.52% annually.
The proportion of persons representing Millenials is 26% (8,896,724) and those representing Generation Z are 28% (9,581,087).
Revenue from e-commerce stands at US$7,141 million in 2019 and is expected growth by 9.5% annually. In 2016, it was found that 58% of Millenials (18-34 years) were shopping online. The remaining 42% were being done by persons older than 34 years. 
Similarly, based on the size of the GenZ and Millenials population, they would account for 54% of the e-commerce spend in Saudi Arabia and the older population accounting for 46%. 

Research StrategyThis research required a number of calculations which we have explained here.
1. To arrive at the absolute number of males and females in KSA, we did the following calculations:
Males = 57.73% x 34,218,169= 19,754,148.9 rounded up to 19,754,149.
Females = 42.27% x 34,218,169 = 14,464,020.
Millenials = 26% x 34,218,169 = 8,896,724
Generation Z = 28% x 34,218,169 = 9,581,087

2. According to Stratfor, Millenials and Generation Z combined make up 54% of the population and Millenials on their own is 26%. To arrive at the percentage of persons considered to be Generation Z, we did this calculation:
= 54% — 26% 
= 28%.

3. To determine how many persons older than 34 years, based on the Visa study, were shopping online, we performed the following calculation:
=100%-58% 
=42%.

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Demographic Analysis - Kuwait

26% of people who live in Kuwait are part of the Generation Z cohort. E-commerce in Kuwait is mostly driven by those in the Millennial cohort, making up about 65% of all online shoppers.
Demographic of KuwaitIn 2018, Kuwait had a population of about 4,249,000.
 Of the 4,249,000 people who live in Kuwait, 1,810,000 were female while 2,439,000 were male. This means about 42.6% of the population were female while about 57.4% were male.
Around 26% of the population, or about 1,104,740 Kuwaitis, represent Generation Z while around 30.34%, or about 1,289,146 Kuwaitis, are represented by Millennials.
E-commerce Participation in Kuwait 65% of all online buyers are represented by people in the Millennial cohort, specifically those in their 30s.
Most of the online shoppers in Kuwait are male, making up about 70% of all Kuwaiti online shoppers.
Research StrategyFor this research, we leveraged reports from credible statistical and research sites to come up with the information reported above. We have defined the Gen Z cohort as those who were born between 1995 and 2015 while the Millennial cohort is those who were born between 1980 and 1994. This means those aged 4-24 years old are considered Gen Z while those aged 25-39 are Millennial. Since the source used for this research reported proportions of the population by age group, we have added together information reported for the relevant age groups for Gen Z (5-9, 10-14, 15-19, 20-24) and Millennial (25-29, 30-34, 35-39). The calculations used are detailed below.
Calculations used:Percentage of male/female in the population = (Number of male/female / Total number of population) * 100%
(1,810,000 / 4,249,000) * 100% = 42.598258%
(2,439,000 / 4,249,000) * 100% = 57.401742%
Percentage of Kuwaitis who are Gen Z/Millennial = Sum of percentages of age groups included in the cohort
Gen Z: (3.55 + 3.72) + (3.06 + 3.32) + (2.59 + 2.99) + (2.89 + 3.88) = 26%
Millennial: (3.51 + 4.99) + (4.64 + 6.02) + (4.59 + 6.59) = 30.34%
Number of Kuwaitis who are Gen Z/Millennial = Percentage of population who are Gen Z/Millennial * Total number of population
 26% * 4,249,000 = 1,104,740
 30.34% * 4,249,000 = 1,289,146.6

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Demographic Analysis - Egypt

Egypt's population is estimated to be 86.814 million people with 51.53 percent of these being male. Additionally, Millennials account for 23.1 percent while Gen Z are 38.8 percent. A detailed overview of these statistics is provided below. 
Male Versus FemaleAccording to Egypt's Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS), in the country's 2006 census, the country had a total of 86,813,723 people. Of these people, males were 44,304,619 people (51.03 percent) while females were 42,509,104 people (48.97 percent).
According to CAPMAS, Egypt's total population was estimated to be 98,101,011 people, as at January 1, 2019. Of these, males were estimated to be 50,547,295 people (51.53 percent) while females were 47,553,716 people (48.47 percent).
Millennials and Gen ZPew Research defines Millennials as people aged 23-38 years (in 2019) while Gen Z are those aged 7-22 years (in 2019).
Egypt's CAPMAS population breakdown by age includes the following age groups: 0-4, 5-9, 10-14, 15-19, 20-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, 40-44, 45-49, 50-54, 55-59, 60-64, 65-69, 70-74, 75 plus.
From the above breakdown Gen Z (that is, age 5-24 years) were estimated to be 38,064,134 people (38.8 percent) while Millennials (that is, age 25-39 years) were estimated to be 22,765,005 people (23.1 percent).
E-Commerce ParticipationAccording to statistics from a 2017 report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Egyptians aged 15-29 years accounted for 53 percent of all e-commerce purchases. Additionally, the second largest age group of online shoppers were those aged 33-44 years who comprised 33 percent of all online shoppers. 
The UNCTAD report also indicates that 69 percent of all online shoppers are males. Moreover, e-commerce shoppers primarily reside in the urban areas (70 percent). Also, these shoppers have a university education (56 percent) or preparatory education (6.6 percent) or a high school education (31.5 percent). 
Research StrategyTo locate the relevant statistics on Egypt's population and e-commerce usage, your research team leveraged a variety of governmental and statistics sources to synthesize this data into the findings. For the number of Millennials and Gen Z, we utilized population data from Egypt's Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS). From this population breakdown we computed age groups that were closest to Millennial and Gen Z as shown in this spreadsheet. 

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Major E-commerce Players - Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

While there is no publicly available information to fully answer the question, we've used available data to pull together key findings that provide an analysis of the top five e-commerce sites in Saudi Arabia based on web traffic: Haraj, Souq, Amazin, Jarir, and Noon. These are widely regarded as the leading companies in the Saudi Arabian e-commerce market and are therefore also likely among the top in terms of sales. A deep dive of these findings along with an analysis of why we could not directly answer the question in terms of e-commerce sales in 2018 has been provided below. 
Helpful FindingsHarajRetail Category: Cars, electronics, real-estate, and livestock. 
Web Traffic: Number one rank for e-commerce sites in Saudi Arabia based on web traffic. Over 21 million visits per month, globally, with 88% of all traffic coming from Saudi Arabia. 
2018 E-commerce Sales: Unknown. The most recent publicly available figure is around $106 million per month (in 2015), which equates to about $1.27 billion per year. 
Channel: E-commerce only (website), however, users cannot pay online, they have to pay at a physical, designated location. 
SouqRetail Category: Numerous categories ranging from fashion, electronics, home, office, software, toys, automotive, etc. 
Web Traffic: Number two rank for e-commerce sites in Saudi Arabia based on web traffic. Over 23 million visitors per month, globally, with over 31% of all traffic coming from Saudi Arabia. 
2018 E-commerce Sales: Unknown. This company does not make its financials public, however, reports estimate that the company earned $136 million in 2014, with $270 million estimated for 2015. This appears to be the most recent publicly available figure, as the company was acquired by Amazon in early 2017. There is no mention of Souq's revenue in Amazon's 2018 annual report. Owler estimates the company's current revenue to be around $500 million. 
Channel: Online.
AmazonRetail Category: Numerous categories ranging from fashion, electronics, home, office, software, toys, automotive, etc. 
Web Traffic: Number three rank for e-commerce sites in Saudi Arabia based on web traffic. Over 2 billion visits per month, globally. The exact percentage of traffic coming from Saudi Arabia is not publicly available. 
2018 E-commerce Sales: Amazon's net sales in 2018 were $232.8 billion. They do not report sales on Saudi Arabia or the Middle East specifically, however, their international sales (i.e. non-North America) as a whole was around $65.8 billion. 
Channel: Online. 
JarirRetail Category: Books, educational material, electronics, office supplies, office furniture. 
Web Traffic: Number four rank for e-commerce sites in Saudi Arabia based on web traffic. Nearly 8 million visitors per month, globally, with over 79% of all traffic coming from Saudi Arabia. 
2018 E-commerce Sales: Unknown. The company not explicitly state 'e-commerce sales on their annual report' however their total 2018 revenue was around 7.3 billion SAR (or about 1.9 billion USD). 
Channel: Online and physical stores.  
NoonRetail Category: Fashion, baby, home, electronics, etc. 
Web Traffic: Number five rank for e-commerce sites in Saudi Arabia based on web traffic. Over 15 million visits per month, globally, with nearly 22% of all traffic coming from Saudi Arabia. 
2018 E-commerce Sales: Unknown. In 2017, it was reported that Noon's online sales were around $3 billion. Another article suggests that online sales are estimated to reach $13.9 billion by 2021. 
Channel: Online.
Research Strategy The top 7-10 e-commerce companies in Saudi Arabia based on e-commerce sales in 2018 could not be identified, largely because the 2018 e-commerce sales for the largest players in this market are not publicly available. Although website traffic can be used to identify the key players in this market, analysis into the first top five players identified revealed that their 2018 e-commerce sales data is not publicly available for the following reasons: 

 Haraj: Haraj appears to be a privately held company and does not have an annual report publicly available. Analysis of third-party resources and interviews with the company's founder did reveal a 2015 revenue that seems credible, however. Other websites that commonly report estimated revenues for private companies (e.g. Owler, Hoovers) either did not have any information about Haraj or they were providing obviously incorrect revenues in the very low millions. One reason why this may be is because, as one source notes, "Haraj doesn’t have an online payment option, which makes it harder to track the number of transactions made and count the [company's] commission." 
 Souq: Like Haraj, Souq does not have a publicly available annual report. While a 2014 figure and 2015 projection were located from a seemingly credible source, we were unable to locate a more up-to-date credible figure. This is likely because Souq was acquired by Amazon in early 2017 and Amazon has not published Souq's financial data. For example, in Amazon's 2018 annual report, there is no mention of Souq's revenue. Owler provides an estimate of $500 million (as noted in the key findings), however, the credibility of this information could not be verified by Wonder. 
 Amazon: Although Amazon is a public company with an annual report, an analysis of their report revealed that they do not disclose a geographic breakdown of their sales (only North America vs. International), and research into third-party media sources did not reveal any sales or revenue figures for Amazon in Saudi Arabia. 
Jarir: Jarir has revenue data available via an annual report, however, their revenue does not breakdown their sales between e-commerce and their physical store locations. Additionally, the company appears to operate several subsidiaries, for which granular financial and operations figures were not readily available, which further complicated the process of attempting to locate or triangulate their e-commerce sales data. 
Noon: Likewise, Noon does not have an annual report publicly available. Total revenue figures were located during the research, not for 2018 explicitly and it is not clear whether these figures are isolated to online sales or whether they include some other revenue stream as well. 
In addition to researching each of these companies one by one, our team also hunted for any reports about the state of e-commerce in Saudi Arabia. We hoped that perhaps we could find data showing the market share percentages of each company along with a total market size. However, we were unable to locate any reports that provide this information. Rather than breaking down the data by company, these reports mostly break data down by product category, as shown in this report. There are a number of other paywalled reports which may or may not report the market share of key players in this market, but our team was unable to confirm whether any for sure have this specific data. Overall, an extensive analysis of publicly available data in similar types of reports did not yield sufficient results. Likewise, research into the market share percentages of each company through other independent resources such as articles and databases failed to produce any results. Again, these resources only showed market share figures broken down by category. The likely reason for this is because it appears these companies on the whole are quite elusive when it comes to making their e-commerce sales data publicly available. 
Potential Alternative Research During our research, we noted that many of these companies have publicly available valuations, and therefore, an additional research could be conducted to examine the top 7-10 e-commerce companies in terms of valuation. Further research into this vein could be feasibly conducted within the scope of this request due to time limitations. 

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Major E-commerce Players - United Arab Emirates

The top e-commerce players in the UAE that are pure e-commerce players are Souq, Awok, Namshi, Mumzworld, and Lets Tango. Souq’s global net sales last 2018 reached $590 million.
SouqSouq is considered to be the “largest online superstore” in UAE.
The retail e-commerce site sells a diverse category of items such as groceries, electronics, baby and toys, home and kitchen appliances, and others. 
The retail e-commerce site sports 400,000 products from 31 different categories and is estimated to attract 23 million users every month. 
Additionally, it was acquired by Amazon in 2017 for about $750 million.
As per E-commerce DB, the company’s global net sales of the company reached about $590 million in 2018.
AwokAwok is an e-commerce retail store that sells electronics and gadgets. 
The e-commerce retail store was founded in 2013 by Ulugbek Yuldashev. 
It currently sells 300,000 products from over 50 categories and is estimated to attract 10 million visitors per month.
Additionally, Awok recently received a $30 million funding from StonePine ACE Partners last April 2019.
As per Zoom Info, Awok has an estimated revenue of $12.2 million.
NamshiNamshi is considered to be the largest fashion online store in the Middle East. Faraz Khalid founded it in 2011. 
It sells clothing and fashion accessories for women, kids, men, sports, and others. 
The company was acquired by the Dubai mall developer giant, Emaar, for $151 million in 2017.
Namshi is estimated to have earned Dh 849 million last 2018 ($231 million). 
The e-commerce site is estimated to be visited by 2 million visitors per month.
MumzworldMumzworld is the leading e-commerce store for goods dedicated to babies, children, and mothers in the UAE. 
It was founded by two entrepreneur mothers, Mona Ataya and Leena Khalil, in 2011.
It is ranked seven in Forbes’s top middle eastern brands.
The e-commerce store is estimated to sell 200,000 products and gains about 2.5 million customers per month. It currently raised $20 million from its series B round of funding from Gulf Islamic Investments last October 2018.
CEO and founder, Mona Ataya, claims that the funding can help deliver growth in the company, but refused to give actual figures.
In 2012, a year after the company’s founding, the e-commerce site received 1.2 million unique visitors.  
As per Similar Webs, the site receives an average of 755,000 visitors during the last six months.
As per Zoom Info, the e-commerce store’s revenue is estimated to be $34 million.
Lets TangoLets Tango is another pure e-commerce store dedicated to selling electronics in the UAE. It was founded in 2013 by Dikran Tchablakian and is considered to be one of the fastest-growing e-commerce companies in the UAE.
Its Dh 10 million ($2.7 million) starting fund was funded from Dikran Tchablakian’s own pocket.
The e-commerce site is estimated to receive 1.5 million visitors every month, with 300,000 of those visitors unique or new customers. 
As per Zoom Info, the company’s revenue is at $8.8 million.
Additional InformationWadi/CarrefourWadi is an e-commerce site that offers more than 200 shopping categories. These categories include electronics, watches, beauty products, and others.
It was founded in 2015 by Ankit Wadhwa and Pratik Gupta. 
It was recently acquired by French Supermarket chain Carrefour for $30 million. When visiting the site, users are directed to the Carrefour website.
OpenkartOpenkart is a new e-commerce store that was founded in 2016 by Saheer Abdullah. It was awarded the “Asiavision Excellence Award” in 2018.
It sells various products, including electronics, beauty products, apparel, and more. 
JumboOmnichannel store Jumbo was founded in 1974. The e-commerce website was launched in 2010.
It has store locations in various areas in the UAE, such as Abu Dhabi (six stores), Dubai (13), and Sharjah (4). 
It is primarily an electronics and appliance store. 
In 2015, Jumbo Electronics earned Dh 5 billion (1.3 billion). However, it is unknown how much from this revenue stream it earned from its e-commerce store.
Research StrategyThe research team started the search by looking into a compiled list of the top e-commerce companies in the United Arab Emirates in 2018. During the search, we were able to find a blog post from an industry expert, Elftronix. We then found an article from Go-Gulf from 2015, which we used as a corroborative source. Al Muheet Al Aam Technology, another expert in the industry, provided another recent list of the top sites for online shopping in the UAE, but the list was lacking with information. Finder, a site dedicated to helping consumers the best site for online shopping, also provided their own list, which was used to corroborate with our main article from Elftronix. After the search, we then compiled a list of e-commerce sites that were widely discussed from all the sources. The team then proceeded to look into the revenue and sales of each company in 2018.

We then proceeded to look into each of the stores’ revenue and sales for 2018. During the search, we visited various sites that have sales reports regarding some e-commerce sites, such as E-commerce DB. The team also looked into each of the company’s website to see if they have published an annual report. If we could not find the sales figure for 2018, we would then look for the sales figure in media sites and news sites such as The National, Khaleej Times, and Forbes Middle East. Lastly, if we could not find the sales figure for 2018 during the previous searches, we would then look into business data sites such as Zoom Info and Crunchbase.

During the search, we were able to find sales figures in 2018 for e-commerce companies Souq and Namshi. We were able to find customer stream and revenue for Awok, Lets Tango, and Mumzworld, alongside their recent funding. 

The team was not able to find revenue, sales, and customer stream for Wadi, Openkart, and Jumbo after implementing the aforementioned strategies. The team was able to find an article that discussed the sales of Jumbo in 2014-2015. However, the sales were not bifurcated by retail sales or online sales. We then decided to place them as additional information as there was no statistical benchmark we can use to determine them as an industry leader.

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Major E-commerce Players - Egypt

After conducting extensive research, we were only able to determine the top two e-commerce companies in Egypt based on the revenue generated from sales as Jumia and Souq. Other top players identified include OLX and B.TECH. We have provided the research strategies used to explain why some of the requested information was not available.

OVERVIEWThe two major e-commerce sites in Egypt are Jumia and Souq, with market shares of 48% and 25%, respectively. Other top players include OLX and B.TECH.
Souq was acquired by Amazon in 2017 and is an omnichannel player, while Jumia is a pure e-commerce player.
E-commerce only accounts for 0.4% of the total retail sales in Egypt.
According to Statista, the value of e-commerce sales in Egypt was estimated to reach $5 billion in 2018.
JUMIAJumia accounts for 48% of Egypt's e-commerce market share, which is equal to $5 billion x 48% = $2.4 billion in sales.
It is an online store only, as there is no mention of a physical store.
Its categories include phones & tablets, computing, electronics, home & office, fashion, health & beauty, recharge and bills, grocery, baby products, and others.
SOUQSouq is now Amazon.ae, and it accounts for 25% of Egypt's e-commerce market share, which is equal to $5 billion x 25% = $1.25 billion in sales.
It operates both online and physical stores.
Its categories include computers, home, books, and electronics.
OLXOLX operates both online and physical stores.
Its categories include vehicles, home furniture — decor, books, sports, & hobbies, properties, fashion & beauty, jobs, mobile phones, tablets, & accessories, pets — accessories, business — industrial — agriculture, electronics & home appliances, kids & babies, and services.
B.TECH
It operates both online and physical stores.
Its categories include mobiles & tablets, TVs, personal care, small home appliances, large home appliances, laptops & computers, and electronics.

RESEARCH STRATEGY
We began by researching market reports regarding the top players in the e-commerce space in Egypt. We visited sites such as Deloitte, Business Wire, and SimilarWeb, among others, to find information about the same. We hoped to find useful information regarding the top e-retail/e-commerce companies in the country. From SimilarWeb, we obtained a list that identified the leading e-retail companies in Egypt. However, the report was behind a paywall, and we were only able to get four of the companies. The source did not provide the metrics for its ranking, i.e., we were unable to determine the amount of money generated via e-commerce sales in 2018 for each company using this approach. Business Wire provided analysis for the e-commerce market in MENA from 2017-2022. This report was also paywalled.

Next, we searched for government trade-related reports that would highlight information regarding the e-commerce industry. We searched through sites such as Export.gov and Import-Export Solutions, which usually provide data about the same. We hoped to identify the top e-commerce/e-retail companies using this strategy. However, we only found mention two top e-commerce companies and two emerging companies. These sites did not provide their sales in the country or the metrics used to rank them as the top. As such, we carried out further research to find the same.

Among the top players listed by SimilarWeb, we noticed a correlation with the data provided by Import-Export Solutions, as well as other sources that identified two major (Jumia and Souq) e-retail/e-commerce companies in Egypt. We then searched for their sales volume in the region but found no results for the same. Next, we looked for their market shares to allow us to triangulate the requested info, which we obtained from The Business of Fashion and Bain & Company. We provided the ranking based on the revenue generated in sales for Jumia and Souq. Doing the same for the remaining identified company would have made this request out of scope for the timeframe allocated. As such, we proceeded to provide the other details requested for each company.

Please note that we did not include Amazon among the top players because it already acquired Souq, which is now Amazon.ae.

Part

of eleven

Part

Major E-commerce Players - Kuwait

The major e-commerce players in Kuwait that are pure e-commerce players are Xcite, Boutiqaat, Wantitbuyit, Taw9eel, Digumz, Opensooq and Blink. Smartek, on the other hand, operates as an Omni-channel store in both wholesale and retail markets in Kuwait.  
Xcite Xcite is one of the top online marketplaces in Kuwait that deals in consumer electronic products such as computers, laptops, smartphones and other appliances. 
X-Cite is headquartered in Kuwait City, Al Asimah, Kuwait and compliments its electronic shopping experience through its multi-channel online store. 
The company's primary focus is e-commerce and therefore offers many of its products and services online. 
According to Zoom Info, Xcite has an estimated revenue of $9.4 Million.
BoutiqaatBoutiqaat is one of the leading beauty e-commerce platforms for women products based in Kuwait. A Kuwaiti entrepreneur Abdulwahab Alessa founded the company in 2015.
The company majors in e-commerce and has virtual stores that allow their customers to browse the products they are willing to purchase. Boutiqaat ships products to its customers in Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain.
Boutiqaat sells over 25,000 fashion and beauty products from 700 different brands across the globe. 
The company raised $45 million in 2018 from a local investor, making it the best-funded startup in Kuwait and the entire region. 
In early 2019, Boutiqaat doubled its valuation to $500 million after raising an undisclosed amount. 
According to Zoom Info, the Boutiqaat e-commerce store's revenue is estimated to be $6 million.
WantitbuyitWantitbuyit is one of the leading online shopping stores in Kuwait that offers a wide range of IT and electronic products. 
The company is a division of Burhan Technology company based in Kuwait and only focuses on electronic online shopping.   
According to Zoom Info, the Wantitbuyit e-commerce store's revenue is estimated to be $7.6 million. 
Taw9eelTaw9eel (Tawseel) is among the top online retailers in Kuwait. The company sells a wide variety of goods from kitchen appliances, jewelry, groceries, perfumes, and pharmaceuticals, all the way to smartphones, televisions, and video games through its online e-store.
The company has its headquarters in Kuwait and boasts of 30,000 items. In 2018 alone, the company shipped over 3.5 million items. 
As per Zoom Info, the Taw9eelthe e-commerce store's revenue is estimated to be $4.6 million. 
Smartek (stckwt)Smartek is an online computer store based in Muhafazat Hawalli, Kuwait. The company deals with computers, consumer electronics, and other IT related products. 
The company was established in May 2004 and operates as an Omni-channel store operating in both wholesale and retail markets in Kuwait. 
As per Zoom Info, the e-commerce store's revenue for Smartek is estimated to be $6.2 million. 
DigumzDigumz is an online shopping website with its headquarters in Muhafazat Hawalli, Kuwait. The company was founded on July 16, 2013, and its objective was expanding the video rental concept in the Middle East eCommerce market. 
Digumz.com deals with a broad range of online games and is considered one of the biggest video games websites in Kuwait. It offers the latest games and online video game rental services in Kuwait, where customers can purchase or rent games and accessories. 
The company delivers the widest variety of games in Kuwait including the PlayStation 3, PSP, X box 360, and WiiU among others.  
As per Zoom Info, the e-commerce store's revenue for Digumz is estimated to be $6 million.  
Blink Blink is an international electronic commerce company and has its headquarters in Kuwait. The company was founded on Jan 1, 2009, and is considered one of the largest online retailers in the Middle East. 
The company currently serves in Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Egypt, Oman, U.A.E and Jordan. It began as an online computer and accessories store but later diversified and currently sells electronics, video games, software, women's apparel, stationery & office supplies, fashion accessories, food, and toys. 
Blink's deals with more than 10,000 in-stock products, and as per CrunchBase, the company had revenue of $40.2 million in 2018.  
Opensooq Opensooq offers sellers with the ability to sell their products and services to millions of its users spread across the Middle East and North Africa. The company was founded on Sep 1, 2012, and is one of the top e-commerce players operating in Kuwait.
As a leading classified in North Africa and the Middle East, Opensooq offers a wide variety of goods and services that include electronics, real estate, and cars among many other products and services.
The company operates as a pure e-commerce player, and as per CrunchBase OpenSooq, it had an estimated revenue of $10 million.   
Research Strategy We began our search by compiling a list of the major e-commerce companies that operate in Kuwait. In the process of the compilation, we came through an article written by an industry expert and that enlisted the sites that operate in Kuwait. Our research also led us to the shop rank website that curated commerce sites in Kuwait. The research team further dug deeper to find other sources that could help give more information about major e-commerce companies operating in Kuwait, this resulted in another article that covered e-commerce sales facts in Kuwait. We used these three articles to corroborate and thus came up with a list of e-commerce sites that were widely covered in the three articles. 

Because our focus was on the major e-commerce sites in Kuwait, our research team narrowed down the search criteria and focused on the sites that centered on pure e-commerce. This resulted to a list of seven sites and that met the criteria of pure e-commerce players. The research team conducted further search but this time omnichannel players operating in Kuwait were considered and where another site was listed. After compiling the list, the research team went ahead to look into each of the stores' revenues and sales for the year 2018. Our search led us to databases and the listed companies' official websites where we were able to find vital information about their sales and revenues.    

Did this report spark your curiosity?

Sources

From Part 01

From Part 02

Digital 2019: Kuwait — DataReportal – Global Digital Insights

datareportal.com

Publication Year: 2019

E-commerce in Kuwait

nordeatrade.com

Retail brand Centrepoint launches Kuwait e-commerce site, apps

arabianbusiness.com

Publication Year: 2019

Strong retail activity forecast for Kuwait

oxfordbusinessgroup.com

Publication Year: 2019

From Part 03

Egyptian Market : E-commerce

import-export.societegenerale.fr

Quotes

"The number of online shoppers is also increasing steadily, from 15.2 million to 17.7 million, between 2015 and 2016, however it is also far from reaching maturity considering the total population of the country. In fact, there is a significant difference between the urban and rural population's access to online marketplaces (70% of online shoppers are in urban areas). Internet users aged under 30 are the most active online shoppers, accounting for half of consumers. Mobile phones were by far the most popular product among online shoppers in 2017 (61%), followed by laptops (37%) and clothes (34%). Cash on delivery remains by far the most popular payment method, as in most other Arab countries, accounting for 70% of all purchases, followed by credit cards (16% of purchases). There is a low number of credit and debit card holders in the country, around 10 million people, which is one of the main challenges e-commerce faces in the Egyptian market. Still, 67% of consumers state they would be willing to switch to online payments if they knew it was secure, according to PayFort. Egyptian consumers are rather frequent online shoppers. According to a Hootsuite survey (2018), 40% of Internet users searched online for a product or service to buy, whereas 35% of them visited an online store and 22% ended up purchasing online in the last 30 days."