Eastern Europe

Tea edged towards stagnation in retail volume terms in 2023, in contrast to its more dynamic performance earlier in the review period. In general, Latvia is a coffee consuming country, meaning that tea has more of a niche presence. In addition, there…

Lithuania has a solid coffee-drinking culture, and its popularity far outweighs tea drinking. Traditionally, tea was normally consumed as an addition to the daily intake of hot drinks. However, its popularity waned across the review period as the…

In 2023, tea repeated its success from the previous year by yet again achieving a strong retail value growth rate and continuing on a path towards full recovery in retail volume terms following the negative impact of the COVID-19 crisis. Significant…

Despite the prevailing inflation in Romania, bags and luggage continued to exhibit growth. Average unit prices surged in 2022 and 2023 due to increased costs associated with energy, raw materials, and other factors. This led many Romanians to opt for…

Bottled water is generally seen as a more “premium” niche in Lithuania, due to the high quality of the tap water in the country. This means that consumers do not typically add bottled water to their shopping lists as a necessity and, in this sense,…

Tap water in most parts of the country remains suitable for human consumption and in certain areas is of excellent quality despite ongoing concerns about overall environmental pollution. However, as health and wellness trends continue to impact soft…

Carbonates continues to face challenges, due to the majority of drinks in the category deemed to be unhealthy due to their high sugar content. Added to which, the current economic conditions mean consumers are prioritising essentials over…

In 2023, carbonates achieved minimal off-trade volume growth as consumer demand was significantly impacted by the negative image that carbonates has gained amongst increasingly health conscious consumers, largely, though not entirely, due to the…

Concentrates is an uninteresting category in Lithuania, with low interest and few developments. One key reason for this is the unhealthy image of concentrates, due to the high sugar content in such products.

Concentrates registered decline in off-trade volume terms in 2023 as liquid concentrates sales fell due to diminishing consumer demand. At the same time, thanks to the significant unit price increases in the context of high rates of general…

Energy drinks is the other robustly performing category, along with sports drinks. Whilst energy drinks took a hit during the pandemic lockdowns, off-trade volume growth has followed a most positive trajectory over the review period and this…

In 2023, energy drinks saw off-trade volume sales rise as demand was driven by the younger generation of consumers, mostly Millennials and Gen Z, whose demand increased as they resumed partying and socialising after the disruption resulting from the…

Amid challenging economic conditions, local consumers have shown a rising interest in investing in fine jewellery, particularly gold. Fine jewellery has also gained popularity as a high-value gift item. In addition, the lifting of pandemic…

Juice sales continue to decline in Lithuania, due to such products losing their perceived “healthy” image due to high sugar content, along with high prices placing downwards pressure on demand. Traditionally, juice had been perceived as a “healthier”…

Juice achieved stable off-trade volume growth in 2023 with sales supported by the continued consumer demand for the largest product categories, especially nectars and juice drinks. In addition, the continued shift from carbonates to juice is having a…

Even though inflation remained high in Romania in 2023, personal accessories saw growth in both current value and volume terms. Romanians are increasingly preoccupied with improving their personal image, and despite declining purchasing power, they…

Whilst RTD coffee sees positive off-trade volume growth, the category is mostly uninteresting for consumers in Lithuania, with overall volumes sold remaining minimal. RTD coffee faces direct and strong competition from hot brewed coffee and energy…

RTD coffee continued to rebound from the impact of the COVID-19 crisis in 2023, as consumers returned to their familiar hectic lifestyles in the absence of movement restrictions and once again demanded soft drinks for on-the-go consumption. RTD…

RTD tea remains in a slump in 2023, despite seeing some upticks to the category’s performance in earlier years due to the novelty value. Overall, however, RTD tea is not a traditional or popular beverage in Lithuania, carries no clear benefit…

The health and wellness trend, which is exerting a strong influence across soft drinks, has had a particularly marked impact on the development of the RTD tea category. With increasing awareness of the rise in the prevalence of obesity and other…