Retailing

Cities are hubs for spending, with 80% of expenditure expected to be generated by urban areas in 2023. Spending growth in 2023 will, however, be sluggish, as cost of living challenges force consumers to be more conservative in their expenditure. Over…

Consumers are facing increased pressure from rising prices as global inflation reaches 7% in 2023. The impact of higher costs of living is felt from top earners in developed markets to struggling households in emerging and developing countries.…

With inflation still being an issue, though apparel and footwear specialists in Bulgaria registered an increase in current value sales, constant value sales fell, as continuing rising costs cut into profit margins. There was also a slight decline in…

Apparel and footwear specialists is another channel which was seeing strong value growth in Hungary in 2023. Indeed, this trend continues from 2022, which also saw double-digit value growth, as the channel bounced back from the pandemic restrictions…

Apparel and footwear specialists recorded moderate value sales growth in 2023. A positive impact on the channel is the rapidly changing fashion that drives the sale of fast fashion, and even the visible trend of ultra-fast fashion, where consumers…

Apparel and footwear specialists in Romania recorded strong, double-digit retail value growth in 2023. This positive performance is partly driven by consumers returning to physical stores, after COVID-19 restrictions were lifted in March 2022. The…

Apparel and footwear specialists registered a fall in current value sales in Slovakia in 2023. With inflation still being high, consumers were price sensitive and cut back on spending on non-essentials. Also, when consumers did purchase, they traded…

Apparel and footwear in the Czech Republic witnessed steady volume and current value growth in 2023 as shopping patterns started returning to normality post-pandemic. Price increases were also a factor underpinning current value growth, with this…

Following a sharp contraction in 2022, apparel and footwear specialists in Ukraine saw current value sales rebound strongly in 2023. However, its recovery was skewed by price hikes imposed to offset inflationary pressures, with trade remaining…

Performance was muted in 2023 for appliances and electronic specialists in Bulgaria, with minimal current value growth, and constant value sales falling. Continuing rising prices cut into profit margins and reduced consumers’ purchasing power. As…

Inflationary pressures supported value sales for appliances and electronics specialists in Hungary in 2023, due to the resulting increases in unit prices. Indeed, retailers and manufacturers alike have been facing increased operational costs, rising…

Appliances and electronics specialists saw current value sales decline slightly in 2023. Trade was depressed as rapidly rising inflation caused unit prices to increase sharply and weakened consumer confidence and purchasing power. These conditions…

Following strong growth during COVID-19, in 2023, appliances and electronics specialists in Romania registered a downward trend. For larger appliances, sales were sustained in 2023 as consumers applied for vouchers through a scrappage scheme, driving…

It was a poor trading year for appliances and electronics specialists in Slovakia in 2023. With inflation still high, consumers prioritised essentials and postponed purchases, if at all possible. As such, there was a significant fall in both current…

HP Tronic Zlin spol sro has consolidated its lead among appliance and electronics specialists in the Czech Republic, after Datart acquired Euronics in 2023. Some Euronics locations have been closed, whilst some have been transferred to Datart, thus…

While appliances and electronics specialists in Ukraine showed a much improved performance in current value sales terms in 2023, it remained one of the retail channels worst affected by the Russian invasion. Because the types of goods such outlets…

Euromonitor International’s Commerce 2040 series outlines a vision for how consumers might shop in two decades. This report focuses on how the competing forces that are reshaping retail will impact the future of the store. In particular, the shift…

In the upcoming years, consumers and businesses face an array of challenges, with rising income inequality being among the key ones. Nevertheless, addressing the income inequality through catering to the Bottom of the Pyramid and the Middle Class…

2023 was not a good year for convenience retailers in Bulgaria. With inflation still being high, consumers cut back on spending in convenience retailers, as prices tend to be higher than in other grocery retailers. In addition, there is a degree of…

Convenience stores continued to be affected by price hikes in Hungary in 2023. Whilst inflationary pressures have had effects across retail, we see some specific spikes and falls.

Convenience stores recorded slower value dynamics than overall retail in 2023. Higher prices in this channel stimulated a consumer shift towards discounters and supermarkets. The situation in the market favoured retail chains that can afford to offer…

The high growth for convenience retailers in 2023 in Romania, was driven by rising interest in proximity shopping. Price growth over the level of inflation limited consumers' purchases to basic food items. Reduction of purchasing power due to…

2023 was not a good year for convenience retailers in Slovakia. With inflation still being high, consumers cut back on spending in convenience retailers, as prices tend to be higher than in other grocery retailers. As such both constant and current…

Convenience retailers in the Czech Republic are suffering amid retail price increases as locals are searching for the best value and price when shopping. When it comes to price, convenience retailers are unable to compete with larger retailers and so…

Convenience retailers in Ukraine continued to prove more successful than other grocery formats in weathering the challenges brought about by the Russian invasion in 2023. Offering a relatively limited range of day-to-day essentials, they were well…

Technological advances are creating unprecedented change across consumer-facing industries. The Digital Consumer Survey, fielded in March and April, offers insight into the pace and depth of this evolution, tracking consumer behaviour, attitudes,…

Direct selling registered a fall in constant value sales in 2022, as double-digit inflation caused by the energy crisis stemming the war in Ukraine dampened volume sales. In fact, direct selling was the worst performing retail channel in 2022, as…

Direct selling registered a fall in current value sales in Bulgaria in 2023. Both high inflation and a shift away from direct selling to e-commerce led to a drop in sales, as e-commerce also provides the convenience of direct delivery. In fact,…

Direct selling exceeded pre-pandemic sales in 2022 as the channel sought to recover from the severe impact of restrictions on selling door-to-door. However, much of the current value growth in 2022 was driven by higher retail prices as inflation took…

Growth in direct selling current value sales in 2022 was up significantly on 2021. While this was partly because spiralling inflation caused unit prices to rise, the improvement was primarily explained by reduced concern about community transmission…

Although value sales through direct selling are low in Georgia, they showed a slight increase in 2022. There is a shift away from this channel due to growing competition from online players, which provide a greater assortment of products and the…

Direct selling saw a slump in Hungary in 2023, caused by a confluence of factors. Direct selling is mostly driven by beauty and personal care direct selling in Hungary, which had previously seen a rebound after the notable declines during the time of…

Health and beauty direct selling continued to dominate retail value sales in 2022, especially through beauty and personal care products. Traditionally, direct selling in Latvia is a well-known channel for beauty products. Moreover, health and beauty…

Before the pandemic, direct selling vendors were making efforts to improve their digital presence by providing both social media communication and e-commerce services in order to meet the demands of their customers and remain relevant. This shift to…

In 2022, though there was healthy growth in current value sales, constant value sales remained unchanged. The war in Ukraine had a negative impact, with the resultant energy crisis leading to soaring inflation and dampening sales somewhat. That being…

In 2023, direct selling registered marginal growth in retail value sales. After a decline in 2022, direct selling returned to positive if marginal growth. The cost-of-living crisis proved beneficial for the industry as more people sought to be hired…

The decline of direct selling in 2023 in Romania was a continuation of the results noted in 2022. Much of this decline was due to the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions, which began in March 2022, and resulted in a strong uplift of consumers in…

Although direct selling saw dynamic growth in current value terms in 2022 this was actually barely above inflation levels. In 2021 direct selling in Serbia started on the path to recovery from the hit it took during the first year of the COVID-19…

Direct selling in Slovakia registered a further fall in both current and constant values sales in 2023. A shift away from direct selling to e-commerce led to a drop in sales, as e-commerce also provides the convenience of direct delivery. In fact,…

Direct selling is seeing positive growth in 2022, albeit below the level of inflation. The category took a hit during the era of the pandemic, when restrictions on person-to-person contact severely dampened value sales, and 2021 only saw a modest…

Direct selling in the Czech Republic experienced a surge in popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic when physical outlets were closed. With online retailers still underdeveloped, direct sellers were able to absorb some of the retail needs of Czechs.…

The mass exodus of refugees from Ukraine in 2022 following the Russian invasion took a particularly heavy toll on direct selling. This was because a high proportion of those who left were women, who not only represent this channel’s main target…

Discounters in Bulgaria were the best performing grocery retailers in 2023. With inflation still being high, consumers were price sensitive and prioritised value for money. As such, discounters registered a moderate increase in constant value sales.…

Discounters continued to be a big trend in Hungary in 2023, with three giants holding all share. Namely, Lidl (Lidl Magyarorszag Kereskedelmi Bt) holds over half of all brand share, followed by Aldi (Aldi Magyarország Élelmiszeripari Kereskedelmi Bt)…

Discounters recorded double-digit value sales growth in 2023. Discounters are successful thanks to convenient locations and a wide range of goods, including groceries, clothing, electronics, household items and beauty and personal care in one place.…

Strong, double-digit retail value growth for discounters in Romania in 2023 resulted from heightened footfall driven by rising inflation. As bills rose, consumers were forced to reevaluate their spending habits, including migrating to other channels…

Discounters in Slovakia were one of the better performing grocery retailers in 2023. With inflation still being high, consumers were price sensitive and prioritised value for money. As such, discounters registered an increase in current value sales,…

High inflation has led to a much weaker economy in 2023, with the increased costs of living benefiting discounters in the Czech Republic. As household spending tightened, price became the overriding factor when purchasing most household goods. Czechs…

Muted performance for general merchandise in 2023

General merchandise stores saw declining sales in Hungary in 2023, due to the low levels of activity in the category. It is also well consolidated, with Ecofamily (Napcsillag Kft) holding just under half of all brand share. Indeed, Ecofamily has…