Its advantages: Russians are returning for large purchases offline
In July, attendance at electronics and home appliance stores in Russia increased by 9% at once, and traffic in the home goods segment increased by 6%, the analytical company Focus Technologies calculated for Izvestia. At the same time, such an atypical trend for the middle of summer is observed against the background of a general decrease in the flow of customers in shopping malls. Experts attribute this to promotional activity and preparation of retailers for the new season. An additional factor in the traffic increase could be disruptions in the logistics of large marketplaces: some consumers, unwilling to wait for delivery, might prefer to purchase the necessary goods directly in stores.
How is the traffic in stores growing?
From July 6 to August 2, traffic in electronics and home appliance stores in Russia increased sharply — by 9% compared to 2% in the same period a year earlier. The main increase occurred in the second half of the month. Attendance at home improvement and DIY stores increased by 6% against a decrease of 2% in 2025, according to data from Focus Technologies.
At the same time, in July, the total traffic of shopping centers decreased by 5% year—on-year, with an average of 348 visitors per day per 1,000 square meters of leasable space, according to the Mall Index data. The average daily audience of one electronics and home appliance store decreased by 5% year—on-year over the month, and the DIY store by 1%.
The attendance of M.Video stores is traditionally growing by the beginning of August: compared to July, it increased by 5%, said a company representative.
In "All Instruments.<url>" in July, the preparation of private buyers for construction and repair work noticeably intensified. Sales of construction equipment increased the most year—on—year — by 55%, materials — by 26%, hand tools - by 23%, plumbing - by 20%.
Demand for certain categories of building materials and household goods has also increased at Lemana PRO, said Natalia Novikova, the company's commercial director for the development of commodity markets. Thus, the turnover of tiles with the stone effect increased by 69%, waterproofing and soils — by 29%, cables and wires — by 16%.
In Petrovich, DOM Lenta, and Refrigerator.<url>" refrained from commenting.
Why do Russians visit stores more often?
The acceleration of traffic at the end of July may be explained by seasonality, promotional activity and preparation of retailers for the new season, says Mikhail Vasiliev, head of research and consulting at Focus Technologies. An additional factor, he said, could be disruptions in the delivery of goods amid changes in Wildberries' logistics. Some customers who were not ready to wait for an order could then contact physical stores where the product is available directly at the point of sale, added Ekaterina Kosareva, Managing Partner of VMT Consult.
However, even without disruptions in the logistics of the marketplace, the traffic of these stores probably continued to increase during the summer, Ekaterina Kosareva believes. According to her, the market still has a wide range of products on other online platforms, so problems with one do not necessarily lead to the buyer going offline - he can choose another online seller.
Since mid-July, the operation of the logistics infrastructure of Wildberries has been repeatedly disrupted due to drone attacks. The company's complexes in the Moscow and Tambov regions were damaged. Later, fires and damage occurred at several other sites, including Krasnodar, Nevinnomyssk, St. Petersburg and Ryazan.
However, RWB does not record a decrease in customer interest in the categories of appliances and household goods, said a company representative. On the contrary, there are local spikes in demand in a number of areas, he said. Therefore, according to him, it is incorrect to talk about system delays or a drop in sales from sellers. The growth of offline traffic is not related to the logistical problems of the marketplace, the RWB representative added.
At the same time, Leman PRO attributes the sales growth not only to changes in the availability of goods on the Internet. According to Natalia Novikova, consumers have become more rational in planning large purchases, which supports demand for certain categories of repair and home goods. Moreover, closer to autumn, retailers are also launching back to school promotions, which help stimulate demand on the eve of the academic and business season, the representative of M. added.Video".
The July figures do not yet indicate a long-term reversal of consumer behavior in favor of offline, Mikhail Vasiliev believes. According to him, it will be possible to talk about a trend change no earlier than autumn, when the holiday season ends and there is a steady demand for large purchases.
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