10% growth in contactless payments in the UAE and Saudi Arabia

"Visa": Traditional retail stores continued to dominate during "Corona"

Akshay Chopra: "Merchants who have adopted online selling and contactless payment systems have faced the crisis better."

The international company, Visa, which specializes in digital payments technology, reported that traditional retail stores in the country continued to dominate during the outbreak of the new Corona virus (Covid-19), despite the growth recorded by e-commerce platforms.

She revealed, during a conference held yesterday on the retail trade sector and the expected future shape of it, that according to market indicators monitored, contactless payments in the UAE and Saudi Arabia recorded a growth of 10% during the second quarter of this year, while discounts stores, household items and pharmacies achieved the highest rates. Growth in sales.

Akshay Chopra, Vice President for Design and Innovation for Eastern and Central Europe, the Middle East and Africa at Visa, said that traditional stores in the UAE and Saudi Arabia accounted for the largest proportions of the retail trade volume, and continued to dominate during the Corona pandemic.

He added, "E-commerce in both countries recorded higher growth rates during the outbreak of the pandemic, according to market data that was monitored from January to July 2020."

Chopra revealed that an increase in contactless payments was observed in the UAE and Saudi Arabia by about 10% in the second quarter of this year, compared to the first quarter of the same year, at a time when discount stores, home supplies and pharmacies achieved the highest sales growth rates among the non-traditional shopping categories. Food.

He pointed out that the outbreak of the pandemic around the world changed the way people shop, and pushed them towards a multi-channel shopping experience, which has naturally become more important than ever before, so the competition is not between e-commerce and its traditional counterpart in stores, but rather revolves around creating a shopping approach. These two models combine to provide customers with the best possible shopping trip, providing an opportunity for innovation in future retail experiences, especially in technologies such as artificial intelligence, robotics, and entertainment shopping, and the two realities: “virtual”, “augmented” and “Internet of things”, as well as About a range of secure contactless payment options.

Chopra stressed that the future of traditional stores is still promising for retailers, who have succeeded in achieving a seamless integration between experiences in physical stores and online shopping, supported by innovative platforms.

He said that retailers, whose sales are limited to cash payments, were the most affected, while retailers, who adopted online sales and contactless payment systems, were able to better face the economic crisis.

Follow our latest local and sports news, and the latest political and economic developments via Google news