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OLX, the online classified advertising and shopping site, records a big jump in new users during quarantine​, reports AIN.ua. In March, the number of new ads posted daily tripled, to 1,150. During the virus -related lockdown, sales of household cleaning products tripled, health and beauty products tripled, and board games increased 79%. With mass transit shut down, bicycle sales increased 70%. Rozetka.ua, Ukraine’s largest online store, reports similar jumps in sales.
Paying online is going mainstream.​ The share online payments for heat and hot water in Kyiv jumped from 50% in early March to 65% at the end of April, reports utility company Kyivteploenergo.
Silpo, the supermarket chain, is expanding home delivery service ​in May from Ukraine’s big five cities – Kyiv, Kharkiv, Dnipro, Lviv and Odesa – to 11 new regional capitals: Chernihiv, Chernivtsi, Cherkasy, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Poltava, Sumy, Vinnitsa, Zaporizhia, and Zhytomyr.
The global lockdown is introducing millions of people around the world to online learning, benefiting Kyiv start up Preply​, reports AFP, in an article: “For One Ukrainian Startup, Coronavirus Means Business Is Booming.” Dmytro Voloshyn co-founded the language learning platform which pairs tutors and students. Helped by anti-virus measures, Preply now has a network of 10,000 tutors in 190 countries and “tens of thousands of students,” Voloshyn says.
Viber, one of Ukraine’s most popular digital communication platforms, reports users are more comfortable with the platform, ​using new features. Video messages have tripled during the quarantine. Audio messaging is up 46% and photo messaging up 39%. With more time on their hands, users are talking 35% more than before.
Vodafone Retail, the IT equipment store, reports that sales volumes in Kyiv changed little during the quarantine​. But in Kharkiv, Dnipro and Lviv, sales are up 30-40% over pre-quarantine levels. The company reports: “At the same time, in Ternopil, Mykolaiv and Chernivtsi, there is a triple increase in the number of orders via the Internet.”
With demand high for cooked meals, Glovo opened in April in Kyiv its first ‘cloud kitchen’ in Ukraine.​ Under one roof, seven restaurants prepare dishes -- Kitaika, 3B Cafe, Torisho, Menya Musashi, Berliner Döner and Foodz Ukraine. The kitchen is closed to walkins, and the cooked food is delivered by Glovo couriers. Since 2018, Glovo has opened ‘cloud kitchens’ in Madrid, Buenos Aires, Lima, Milan and Santiago de Chile.
9.1.8 ​Tourism sector news
Head of the State Agency for Tourism Development of Ukraine Maryana Oleskiv has said that the tourism sector could account for up to 10% of GDP​, if properly managed. "It is important that the state leadership has an understanding of the importance of developing tourism, which has huge potential, and, which can reach up to 10% of GDP if managed properly," she said in an exclusive interview to Interfax-Ukraine. According to her, at the moment, the agency's team is being formed. The agency should be fully operational in May.
63​ UKRAINE Country Report​ June 2020 ​ ​www.intellinews.com