CONSUMER AND SHOPPING BEHAVIOUR IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR Gross domestic product in the Czech Republic grew by 4.4 % year-onyear in H1/2015, according to latest estimate of the Czech Statistical Office (growth in Q1 reached 4,0 %, in Q2 4,6 %). As for latest economic forecast of Czech Ministry of Finance, the GDP growth in 2015 will reach 4,5 % and 2,7 % in 2016. Retail trade grew by 5,4 % in 2014, growth of 5,7 % is expected in 2015. BASIC MACROECONOMIC DATA Indicators 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015E 2016F GDP (%) 2.0-0.9-0.5 2.0 4.5 2.7 GDP, current prices (bil.eur) 155 153 150 153 160 164 GDP per capita (EUR) 15,600 15,300 14,900 14,700 15,400 16.000 Retail trade growth (%) 1,9-1,1 0,1 5,4 5,7 5,5 Average inflation rate (%) 1.9 3.3 1.4 0.4 0.4 1.1 Registered rate of unemployment (%) 6.7 7.0 7.0 6.1 5.2 4.9 Industrial growth (%) 8.5-0.8 0.5 5.0 4.8 5.0 Nominal wages growth (%) 2.2 2.5 0.4 1.9 4.2 4.3 Average monthly gross wages (CZK) Exchange rates CZK/USD (av.) Exchange rates CZK/EUR (av.) 24,433 25,100 25,075 25,607 26,400 27.500 17.70 19.60 19.60 20.75 24.80 25,0 24.60 25.10 26.00 27.50 27.30 27.10 Source: Ministry of Finance, Czech Statistical Office Nov 2015
Czech economic growth accelerated to a record and outpaced all other members of the European Union. The current economic recovery stands on strong foundations, supported by strong domestic demand and increasing public investment activity (due to contributions from EU funds), growth in foreign markets, declining oil prices and domestic fiscal and monetary policy. The Czech National Bank keeps the Czech currency (Czech Crown) weak and the government is in favour of looser budget stance. Continued growth is visible in almost all segments of the manufacturing industry and also in growth of retail sales. GROWTH OF RETAIL TRADE IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC 2012 2013 2014 2015 Q1 Q2 Q3 Retail trade growth -1,1 % 0,1 % 5,4 % 6,0% 6,1% 4,6% Non-food 0,9 % 1,5 % 4.3 % 6,8% 8,1% 4,4% Food -2,5 % -1,1 % 1,3 % 4,2% 3,2% 4,5% Source: Czech Statistical Office Nov 2015 In consumer behaviour, we can observe so called post-crisis period. During the 2012-2013, due to unfavourable economic situation, Czech households had less money and were trying to reduce costs and postpone purchases of durable goods. They preferred less expensive goods (in hypermarkets and supermarkets, it means growing popularity of supermarkets/hypermarkets own labels/brands due to cheaper price). Currently, with the economic recovery, following trends in consumer behaviour can be observed in CZ: increased emphasis on quality rather than quantity of groceries/food overall rationality of purchase decisions (consumers buy only what they need) shopping baskets are getting smaller willingness to go shopping by car is decreasing retail volume is growing
increasing share of promotions in total purchases, special prices have become one of the strongests impulses for choosing a product, as well as a store brand loyalty is weakening middle class is the driving engine of economic growth and retail spendings rising household spendings bring growth in retail sales, but also in spendings on education, travel services, health, insurance etc. These changes have a particularly negative impact on large retail formats, which operate with large shopping baskets. Also, growth of e-commerce is significant, in the year 2013, e-commerce grew by 26,8 %, in the year 2014 by 19,7 % and growth by 20 % continues also in 2015. SHOPPING BEHAVIOUR According to INCOMA Shopping Triggers 2014 market research, nowadays the average Czech customer has eight food stores (hypermarkets, supermarkets, discount stores and smaller supermarkets) within easy reach. Shoppers however regularly shop at only three, while the other 5 stores remain beyond the periphery of their interest. A high percentage of customers even completely refuse to visit certain stores, which leaves their retail potential untapped. The average shopper has 8 food stores within reach, but regularly shops at only 3of them. REASONS WHY SHOPPERS REFUSE TO VISIT A SPECIFIC STORE Ranked according to importance Reason why I do not visit this store at all 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th It is too far away Store is too expensive Poor selection of goods Overall, I do not feel good / comfortable in the store I do not trust the quality of the goods Source: INCOMA SHOPPING TRIGGERS market study
The top reason remains proximity/distance some stores are simply further away than others and this remains the most important factor when choosing a store. This also means that another nearby store does not give me a good enough reason to travel even a few extra meters to the store. The second strongest barrier (average across all chains) is high prices. However, for some chains this barrier is of lesser importance and ranks as low as 7th or 8th place. The third most important factor is the assortment of goods, which together with the quality of goods, is probably the strongest differentiating factor used by retailers to build a distinctive profile and attract more customers. One surprisingly strong factor is shopping environment and store atmosphere, which ranked 4th among shopping barriers, and at certain chains this factor ranked as high as 2nd in importance (after proximity/distance). On the other hand, factors, which customers often complain about, such as long queues, staff behavior and opening hours, do not appear among the strongest barriers. However, some stores are primarily rejected for these very reasons. CZECH RETAIL MARKET In the year 2014, hypermarkets have confirmed their dominant position in the Czech market. As many as 43 % Czech households spend the highest share of their food and drugstore expenditures in hypermarkets. Discount stores have maintained the second position 25 % Czech households spend most money on food there. As for the popularity of supermarkets, 17 % Czech households prefer them when buying food. Smaller shops have been preferred by 15% households. People primarily choose hypermarkets due to the wide choice of goods. Discount stores generally attract consumer due to a combination of favourable prices and reasonable quality. Customers preferring supermarkets mostly decide on a basis of their easy availability and because of the pleasant and clean environment. Small shops are attractive for their customers for their easy accessibility, pleasant and helpful staff and also for easy orientation in the store.
Younger consumers (under 40) with higher education prefer shopping in hypermarkets and supermarkets. On the other hand, discount stores and small shops are popular with older customers and customers with lower education level. MAIN SHOPPING POINTS FOR FAST MOVING CONSUMER GOODS PRIMARY SHOPPING POINTS FOR FMCG IN 2014 small store; 15% supermarket; 17% hypermarket; 43% discount store; 25% Source: Incoma Research, 2015
TOP 10 OF THE CZECH RETAIL In Czech retail, we can observe the growing concentration. Market share of TOP 9 chain stores (Kaufland, Tesco, Ahold, Penny Market, Lidl, Globus, Billa, Spar) increased from 65 % in the year 2011 up to 70 % in the year 2014. KAUFLAND (owned by Schwarz Group from Germany) remained the largest retail chain in 2014, followed by TESCO (U.K.) and AHOLD (the Netherlands). Tesco Stores ČR operate the largest scale of retail formats, from the large Tesco hypermarkets to the Tesco Express convenience stores. In terms of number of stores, PENNY MARKET is a leader with 350 discount stores, followed by AHOLD with 283 stores and LIDL (229 stores). TOP CZECH RETAILERS/TRADERS (FMCG FAST MOVING CONSUMER GOODS) RANKING COMPANY TURNOVER in 2013 (in bil. CZK, excl. V.A.T.) CHAIN, NUMBER OF STORES 1. KAUFLAND 51,30 117 KAUFLAND hypermarkets 2. TESCO STORES 44,01 6 department stores, 63 supermarkets, 53 Tesco Express stores, 86 hypermarkets 3. AHOLD CR 40,06 56 hypermarkets, 227 supermarkets 4. PENNY MARKET 29,86 350 discount stores 5. MAKRO CASH & CARRY CR 29,39 13 wholesale stores, 2 Drive In 6. LIDL CR 24,72 229 discount stores 7. GLOBUS CR 23,00 15 hypermarkets, 3 Globus - Baumarkt 8. BILLA 20,98 206 supermarkets, 5 stop & shop 9. GECO 17,31 252 newspapers and cigarettes stores 10. SPAR 13,25 35 INTERSPAR hypermarkets, 14 SPAR supermarkets Source: Incoma Research, 2015 DITP November 2015