E-shops experienced a 28% increase in shopper spending over the Black Friday weekend

Inflation and discussions about excessive consumption probably took a back seat last week. The desire to load up on good emotions prevailed, so shoppers opened their wallets wider. Black Friday has been a day or weekend of shopping celebrations for several years now, and this year is no exception. Purchases in e-shops started rising already on Wednesday, maintained growth on Thursday, and peaked on Friday, exceeding the previous weekdays' average by 50 per cent – says Marijus Plančiūnas, CEO of Paysera.

Paysera data shows that residents spent an average of €66 per e-shopping during the Black Friday weekend this year, while last year, the average basket amount was slightly lower at €64.

In cases where shoppers chose to pay for purchases through leasing or the Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) method, the average basket amount increased to €474, compared to last year's average of €500. This year, the most common purchases on credit were more expensive items such as jewellery, beauty and health treatments, and tyres, which may have been triggered by the snowstorm that hit Lithuania at the end of the week.

According to Paysera data, the most popular online payment method in the Baltic States during the Black Friday weekend was open banking-based payment initiation from a bank or fintech company account. This method accounted for 79% of shopping baskets paid online. This number is much higher than in Western countries, where debit or credit card online payments are the most common, with a comparable indicator of 1% in the Baltic States.

Black Friday is considered one of the most important events in the economies of many Western countries, as it marks the beginning of the Christmas gift-buying season.