Eastern Europe

After peaking in 2024, Slovakia’s population is set to decline up to 2040, driven by natural decrease. Ageing will remain a key demographic theme as longevity climbs and birth rates drop overall, impacting consumer trends and putting more pressure on…

Depopulation in Slovenia from 2021-2040 will be the consequence of the climbing death rate, partnered with a decline in births. Ageing will be a central theme shaping demographics, with rising living standards resulting in over a quarter of the…

Retail volume sales declined in 2023 due to the rising cost of living and inflation, with many consumers cutting down on purchases of products they felt were unessential, such as small cooking appliances. As such, instead of purchasing new small…

In general terms, small cooking appliances are seeing steady growth trend in retail volume terms, with demand underpinned by the elevated interest in cooking a home that has been seen among the population of Poland since the onset of the COVID-19…

Small cooking appliances are benefitting from the factors which are also stimulating sales in food preparation appliances. Consumers are placing a key focus on healthy diets and lifestyles, thus seek kitchen appliances which help them in this area.…

Retail volume and value sales of small cooking appliances declined in 2023. As in other categories of consumer appliances, the COVID-19 pandemic drove forward purchases of small cooking appliances impacted by periods of home seclusion. Moving into…

Inflation was still an issue in 2023 for small local grocers in Bulgaria, though growth eased. As such, though current value sales rose, constant value sales fell, as continuing rising costs cut profit margins. There was also minimal openings of new…

Small local grocers saw robust value sales in Hungary in 2023, driven by the rise of urbanisation, busy consumer lifestyles, and the convenience which small local grocers offer due to their proximity benefits. Whilst small local grocers have also…

In 2023, small local grocers recorded low growth in retail value sales. Double-digit inflation has changed the shopping habits of Poles. Consumers purchase less, save money, buy cheaper alternatives or limit their consumption. In 2023, sales of beer…

The performance of small local grocers in Romania in 2023, was negatively impacted by the declining number of outlets across the nation. In addition, the elimination of all COVID-19 restrictions in 2022 propelled travelling and bolstered spending in…

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

Small local grocers in the Czech Republic have struggled to adapt in an environment of high inflation, which has weakened the Czech economy since 2022 and created a cost of living crisis for Czech households. Indeed, some outlets were forced to cease…

Small local grocers was the only grocery retailers channel in Ukraine to contract in current value terms in 2023. While trade picked up from 2022 as the initial shock of the Russian invasion receded, it continued to lose ground to modern formats such…

Smokeless tobacco, heated tobacco and e-vapour products in Bulgaria posted dynamic growth despite rising unit prices across all categories. The growing popularity of such products has led to higher excise duty on e-liquids and nicotine free liquids,…

E-vapour products and heated tobacco products were the two most dynamic areas of tobacco in Slovenia in 2023. Increasing awareness about the harmful impact of smoking cigarettes and tobacco has resulted in some consumers switching to alternatives…

Smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products and heated tobacco in Croatia performed well overall in 2023, although chewing tobacco and moist snuff remained negligible. Both e-vapour products and heated tobacco are on an upward retail volume sales…

Smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products and heated tobacco in Estonia performed well in retail volume sales terms in 2023. E-vapour products and heated tobacco are emerging as the major competitors to regular combustible cigarettes. These product types…

In 2023, e-vapour products in Lithuania continued to show strong growth. A significant number of consumers are shifting from regular cigarettes to alternatives perceived as less harmful, particularly single-use vaping devices and heated tobacco.…

In 2023, retail value sales of e-vapour products and heated tobacco recorded double-digit growth in Bosnia Herzegovina. While the smoking prevalence and cigarette consumption, including illicit trade, continue to decline in the country, two other…

Smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products, and heated tobacco in Latvia continued its upward trajectory in 2023, primarily driven by the increasing popularity of heated tobacco and single-use vaping systems. While this growth trend has been consistent…

Both e-vapour and heated tobacco registered healthy volume growth in 2023. That being said, sales were still low. In particular in terms of e-vapour, there is concern that vaping is as harmful as cigarette smoking. In April 2023, the government…

New regulations were introduced for e-vapour products in Serbia in 2023. Amendments to the Tobacco Law, effective from November 2023, established a new category for electronic cigarettes and associated products, regardless of their nicotine content.…

E-vapour products saw a fall in sales in current value terms in Ukraine in 2023, while heated tobacco products saw growth in both current value and volume terms. E-vapour products experienced a significant change in market conditions in Ukraine…

Smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products and heated tobacco in Slovakia saw double-digit rises in volume and current value sales growth in 2023. In February 2023, tobacco products were subject excise taxes increase, though retailers of e-vapour products…

Smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products and heated tobacco in Hungary in 2023 expanded in terms of volume and current value sales. By autumn 2023, all major international tobacco manufacturers had entered the heated tobacco market, with Japan…

Heated tobacco products continued to report dynamic growth in both value and volume terms in 2023. One important reason for the dynamic performance of the category is the local production of heated tobacco and the fact that these products are…

Heated tobacco products was by far the most dynamic of the main categories within smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products and heated tobacco in North Macedonia in retail volume growth terms in 2023. While this was partly because sales are still emerging…

Closed system single use e-cigarettes turned out to be a big winner in 2023 with the category recording dynamic growth for the second year running. These products are perceived as the easiest e-vapour product for new vapers to approach and use. The…

Smokeless tobacco, e-vapour products and heated tobacco in the Czech Republic continued to develop at the end of the review period. As heated tobacco products are viewed by some as the “future of smoking”, it is essential for the major players to…

Snacks continues its strong recovery in 2023, thanks to a period of stable consumer demand in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the post-pandemic period. Despite the rising costs of living, snacks have remained a popular option on the household shopping…

Retail volume sales growth for snacks in Bulgaria in 2023 is expected to be down slightly from 2022. The same is true of growth in retail current value sales, though most categories look set to record stronger performances in this regard than in…

Overall, 2023 is expected to be a positive year for snacks, with further current value and volume growth, supported by a post-pandemic return of foreign tourists in large numbers and an increase in impulse buying and on-the-go consumption. However,…

Snacks is expected to register healthy volume and more moderate constant value growth in 2023, despite continuing economic uncertainty as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the meteoric rise in inflation and tightening monetary policy. In…

Snacks in Georgia is facing ongoing challenges in 2023 caused by external influences, including the war in Ukraine, higher production costs and rising inflation. Multiple categories have seen rising unit prices, with manufacturers leveraging…

Retail volume sales of snacks in Hungary saw a fairly flat performance in 2023. While growth was buoyant in current value terms, this was due to massive inflationary pressures, rather than any real upturn in demand. With Hungary having been added to…

Snacks is expected to register modest constant value and volume growth in 2023, as continuing economic uncertainty as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the meteoric rise in inflation and tightening monetary policy, all have a dampening…

Snacks is witnessing a rebound in retail volume sales in 2023, following a sizeable decline in 2022 caused in large part by the downturn in ice cream sales. The sharp rise in price inflation seen in 2022 is slowing somewhat, but its impact continues…

Snacks continues to make a robust recovery in 2023. Consumer demand for snacks is stabilising and the category is much closer to pre-pandemic sales in retail volume terms, which should be reached in 2024. Snacks is among the most dynamic packaged…

The snacks market in Poland has been significantly affected by the elevated rate of inflation and low consumer and business confidence, which have negatively impacted sales growth. Declining real incomes, coupled with an already low saving rate, put…

Snacks in Romania is seeing a small negative-digit volume decline in 2024, with the volume decline in off-trade sales counteracting the small positive volume gains in on-trade terms. On the other hand, value sales are better supported by inflationary…

Retail sales of snacks saw positive growth in 2023, continuing the pattern of the previous year. This was largely due to the return of consumers to their busy, pre-pandemic lifestyles, including increased opportunities for socialisation inside and…

In 2023, snacks is grappling with the challenges of elevated inflation, a common issue affecting various industries. Rising production costs and commodity prices have resulted in significantly higher retail prices, driving up the value of snacks…

Snacks is expected to register moderate constant value growth in 2023, but volume growth will be minimal. Continuing economic uncertainty as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the meteoric rise in inflation and tightening monetary policy is…

After the Russian invasion in 2022, some snacks companies, including Mondelez International, had to close some Ukrainian factories that had been supplying the Czech Republic. At the start of 2023, production had been restored, either by reopening…

All snacks categories are projected to see good-to-strong retail volume growth over 2023. However, sales bases have been lowered significantly by the slump in 2022, and market sizes at the end of the review period are expected to be lower than in…

The Sofia in Bulgaria report provides comprehensive city level information benchmarked against other cities in the country and region. The report includes historic data and forecasts on city population, consumer expenditure, digital penetration,…

Overall, soft drinks is expected to register a minimal increase in retail volume sales. Continuing population decline dampens volume sales, as well as inflation, though price growth has eased. Growth is also muted through foodservice channels.

The soft drinks market in Bulgaria in 2023 is experiencing transformative changes in response to economic factors and evolving consumer preferences. Inflationary pressures are notably impacting price growth and disposable incomes, leading consumers…

Soft drinks is expected to register muted volume growth in 2023, as a continuing declining population dampens volume sales somewhat. On the other hand, significant numbers of inbound visitors to Croatia in 2023, is expected to give volume sales a…

Energy drinks, led by the reduced sugar format, posted double-digit off-trade volume growth in 2023, while most other categories saw moderates increases. The exceptions were RTD tea and juice, which registered small decreases in retail volume sales…