Croatia

Craft beer, which has been a dynamic product over the review period, faced significant challenges in 2020 as a result of the pandemic. The main threat for craft beer producers has been their typically limited regional distribution into the on-trade,…

Mixed retailers registered a rebound after outlet closures during the 2020 lockdowns. While variety stores operating at normal capacity, current values sales increased in both department stores and variety. Department stores suffered more from the…

Even before the pandemic, wine was in trouble, with volume sales falling. In 2020, volume sales fell by a record fifth, due to COVID-19 restrictions. In 2021, there was a recovery, with volume sales recovering. Whereas before the pandemic, many older…

Skin care showed an improved performance in 2021, with total volume and current value sales growing at faster rates than in 2020. Several categories saw increased demand as the rapid economic recovery that accompanied the easing of the pandemic…

Depilatories was among the areas of the Croatian beauty and personal care market that received a boost from the outbreak of COVID-19, with demand for these products surging as beauty salons offering professional hair removal services remained closed…

The pandemic has been a boon for wipes and in particular general purpose wipes, with alcohol added. With the pandemic still lingering in 2021, there was still strong demand for wipes. In addition, with the return of tourists, a lot of tourists also…

Polish was one of the few home care products that did not benefit from the pandemic, as consumer prioritised cleaning and disinfecting in the light of COVID-19, rather than polishing. In addition, with much less socialising in homes happening in…

Air care did not register a strong boost from COVID-19. In fact, health advice around COVID-19 was to ensure rooms were well ventilated and this hampered demand for air care products, as air care products are less effective in more ventilated…

Spirits registered a recovery in 2021, with volume sales increasing by a fifth. However, with the virus still lingering and certain restrictions still in place, such as restrictions on opening hours for parts of the year, the pandemic still had an…

RTDs are not a popular drink in Croatia and prior to the pandemic were mainly consumed through the on-trade channel. As a result, RTDs suffered a severe slump in volume sales in 2020, during COVID-19 restrictions. In 2021, with society gradually…

Dishwashing benefitted from the lockdowns in 2020, with double-digit value growth, as more dishes were washed due to people being obliged to spend significant amounts of time at home. In 2021, with society gradually opening up, value sales registered…

Because key product types like manual toothbrushes and toothpaste are considered basic necessities in Croatia, oral care has weathered the impact of COVID-19 better than many areas of the beauty and personal care market. Nonetheless, it still saw…

Overall, current value sales were flat in 2021, with volume sales falling slightly. With society gradually opening up in 2021, after the 2020 lockdowns, people were out and about more and there was less demand for home care products and there was…

Globally, COVID-19 spurred a surge in sales of disinfection products and in particular bleach, as it was deemed one of the most effective to kill the virus. The same was true in Croatia and it registered healthy current value growth in 2020. In 2021,…

Alcoholic drinks registered a strong recovery in 2021, after a dismal trading year in 2020, when volume sales fell significantly. The on-trade channel drove this recovery, as footfall increased substantially, supported by higher number of foreign…

After posting declines in total volume and current value sales in 2020, hair care showed a return to growth in both respects in 2021. Demand in most categories rebounded thanks to the easing of the pandemic, with Croatians resuming their regular hair…

Sanitary protection registered an increase in current value sales in 2021, though part of this growth was driven by price rises, with volume growth only increasing marginally. Consumers of sanitary protection are price sensitive and trade down if…

Retail tissue registered a slight increase in current value and volume sales in 2021. Paper towels was the only product that registered a volume decline. With people out and about more in 2021, there was not the same demand for paper towels,…

With society opening up in 2021, those retailers that had been severely impacted by the 2020 lockdowns, registered very healthy current value growth in 2021. This included retailers such as traditional grocery retailers, direct sellers and beauty…

Home insecticides registered higher current value growth than in 2020. Home insecticides largely was unaffected by COVID-19, as it is mainly a seasonal, functional product and is not directly related to the hygiene concerns consumers had in 2020. The…