In less than three weeks, households in Serbia spent 17 million euros on stockpiling in fear of an epidemic. Due to a 20% increase in consumption, large market chains increased their market share. The share of small shops has declined.
In the pandemic, flour, sugar and toilet paper are mostly bought in Serbia, while the most numerous customers are mostly older households, said GfK, a market research company.
Frozen vegetables, canned tuna, eggs, pasta, frozen pastries and edible oil have also been on the list of most wanted products in the past three weeks.
The survey analyzed 32 million purchases made between February 24 and March 15, when households spent 17 million euros. Leading retail chains in Serbia have increased their market share in these three weeks, with a 20 percent increase in household consumption.
Customers spent the most money in hypermarkets, discount chains and supermarkets. During this time, small local shops and markets did not see a significant increase, so their market share declined.
GfK’s research also showed that the share of items purchased at the promotion decreased. Likewise, younger households and those with higher purchasing power did not resort to purchasing supplies in the same way as older households did, as did those with lower purchasing power.
Buyers from Belgrade and Vojvodina spent slightly more on inventories than households in eastern and southern Serbia. Household surveys showed that 26 percent said they were very concerned about the epidemic, BiF writes.
